Vision of the Past
by Blacknayami
Summary: Darth Vader attacks a rebel base on Naboo. During a fight with Luke a ripple in the force sends Vader, Piett, Luke, Leia, Han and Chewie back in time to Naboo, where they find Padme in grave danger. Here Vader finds himself in his 9 year old body! L/V&V/P
1. Arrival

Vision of the Past

By Blacknayami

Chapter 1: Arrival

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this! _

Naboo. A gorgeous planet, lush with verdant foliage, every building a superb piece of architecture. Naboo. A planet with a tradition of just and kind rule and a fair government. Naboo. The place that Darth Vader avoided like the plague.

Whenever politics or military business called him there, Vader was suddenly unexplainably busy. An aide would be sent instead, some strict admiral that would helpfully bully the government into submission. Lord Vader was unfortunately occupied at the planet _______ with business that consisted of ______ and would be there for ______ period of time (normally a rather long period, too) and therefore was regretfully unable to attend _______ occasion. Would _______ please accept his condolences? That was how things generally went regarding Lord Vader and Naboo.

However, this time even the clever sith lord was unable to fabricate an acceptable excuse regarding his absence.

" My master, I am now of the opinion that the rebel alliance is stationed at Naboo", Vader informed Emperor Palpatine.

The emperor slowly swiveled round in his throne to regard his underling.

" Are you quite certain this time, Lord Vader? There have been far more mistakes regarding their base than I had expected from one such as you", was the sibilant response. However, Palpatine was fully aware that Vader was telling the truth. He would never inform Palpatine about something that meant Vader might have to visit Naboo unless the sith lord was absolutely sure that he was correct.

" I am, my master", Vader rumbled.

" Excellent. Take the fleet and ambush them. I want the rebel fools completely wiped out, destroyed once and for all". Immediately after this order Palpatine swiveled away in his throne once more, trying to avoid the protestation that was sure to follow. The attempt at evasion was unsuccessful.

" My master… I am currently busy at the prison planet of Despayre. Perhaps I could send Admiral Piett, he is fully capable…"

" The business at Despayre can wait, Lord Vader", snapped Palpatine. " What could be more important than the annihilation of the rebel alliance once and for all? I will not tolerate any excuses this time, Lord Vader. I have allowed your weak avoidance of the planet in the past, however I will not allow it this time. Your presence is crucial to this battle. Do I make myself clear?"

Vader hesitated, unsure of whether there was still a hope of arguing his point. However, he could tell that Palpatine was unwavering in his position, and the sith lord knew that he did not in reality have an excuse strong enough to keep him from Naboo. Finally Vader responded:

" As you wish, my master". With that, he swept from the room, fury boiling within his ebony armor.

When Vader boarded the Executor after his meeting with Emperor Palpatine his anger had grown enough that it was almost tangible, clinging to his cloak and armor and trailing after him on his path to the deck. Officers almost threw themselves out of his way, and everyone from the lowliest stormtrooper to the highest of officers (Admiral Piett) worked frantically to appear to be working and giving their very best to the tasks they were fulfilling. In such a tense atmosphere, however, it was not difficult for someone to make a mistake. A minuscule one, but a mistake nonetheless.

One officer, having arrived one minute and twenty three seconds late to his post and therefore delaying the delivery of his report on the sanitation systems of the Executor to Admiral Piett found himself collapsed on the deck of the Executor, his windpipe crushed.

Darth Vader, his black mood scarcely improved, strode back to the windows of his ship. Impassionedly, one small corner of his brain that was not occupied with screaming fury to every corner of the galaxy wondered how many more officers he would have to kill on the journey to Naboo in order to overcome his rage.

It would take quite a few.

Luke Skywalker took his knife and cut a tiny portion of meat off of his steak. He dipped it in gravy, sprinkled a few spices on it, covered it with mashed tubers, submerged it in berry sauce. He lay it flat on his plate and piled more slices of steak on top of it, more and more pieces, piling his tower higher and higher, keeping it balanced with the force, reaching out with his fork to deposit the final piece of steak on top-

When another fork jabbed at his tower and caused it to collapse, spraying the destroyer of the Death Star with gravy and berry sauce.

Luke looked up, annoyed. He was greeted by the gaze of Princess Leia Organa, a look that was half annoyance and half worry.

" Luke, what's wrong?" she asked. " You've seemed preoccupied for days! What is it?!"

" I… I don't know!" Luke exclaimed, frustrated. " I feel like… like something's going to happen, but I don't know what! I don't know if it's good or bad, or… I just don't know!"

" Luke…" Leia reached out to him worriedly, however, the young rebel pilot was unable to remain there, feeling as though he should be moving, and he hurried away.

A few minutes later Luke had reached the stone ramparts of the deserted castle in which the rebels were installed and was able to feel a bit of calm for the first time in a while. The cool breeze that blew up at those heights was refreshing as was the lovely view of the forest below. For a moment he could begin to relax. For a moment he was able to forget his anxieties and troubles and just be calm.

But only for a moment. Turning lazily to follow the flight of a bright scarlet bird Luke caught sight of… what was that? Dark shapes in the sky, growing steadily larger, more distinct… Luke turned to the nearest sentry and snatched the man's binoculars. Ignoring the sentry's protests the young jedi focused on the shapes. When he realized what he saw Luke dropped the binoculars. He whirled around and sprinted back inside the castle.

" Attack!" he shouted. " The imperials have arrived!"

And as he ran Luke Skywalker's mechanical hand clenched tightly, an all too clear reminder of the result of his last entanglement with the malevolent presence he could sense approaching the base.

And in the face of such a presence, Luke Skywalker was terrified.

A.N.: I've had this idea for a while, so I figured it was about time to write it! I hope you've enjoyed the story so far, and please leave a review to tell me what you thing! Thanks for reading!


	2. Role Reversal

Chapter 2: Role Reversal

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this! _

Confusion. Everything was confusion, people moved around shouting out incoherent panicked thoughts and blocking the hallways.

Terror. There was the idea of one presence; one being who only the thought of blinded the rebels with fear.

Panic. People were moving every which way, blinded by their confusion and their terror and forgetting all semblances of order and dignity.

In short, the rebel base was in a state of total and complete chaos.

Luke forced his way through the thick crowd, making for the command centre. He had to inform Mon Mothma and the other rebel leaders! Finally realizing that he would never be able to get through in time the young jedi reached out with the force and shoved people to the sides of the hallways in front of him. He burst into the command centre, his clothes and hair rumpled and disarrayed.

" Imperial attack!" he shrieked. " The imperials have arrived!"

Mon Mothma looked up from the table at which she was seated, having been in the midst of giving orders to a general.

" I am fully aware of that, Skywalker", she informed him. " The news came in a moment ago. Go and prepare your ship; the rogue squadron will leave immediately". Her face was calm, however it was a bit paler than usual and her voice shook slightly. Battles with the imperials were usual, but ones where they were completely taken by surprise were quite another.

Luke nodded, feeling embarrassed at having panicked. He hurried from the command center and pushed beings out of his way once more using the force. Trying to focus on the task at hand and not on his fears the young jedi started up his ship and took off. Only two other members of Rogue Squadron had arrived, the mass of people clogging up the halls would have impaired their progress.

Soaring out over the castle Luke caught sight of a swarm of tie fighters quickly approaching.

" Oh no", he groaned to himself, and then he switched on his radio.

" Rogue Squadron, this is Rogue Leader, do you copy?" he asked. True, barely any of the squadron was there but he wanted to try and keep a semblance of calm.

" Rogue 7 here, I copy sir", answered the reedy voice of Har Ktaal. He was a bit of a nervous man, but when he could forget his worries, a fairly skilled pilot…

" Rogue 2 here, I copy Luke", replied Wedge Antilles, and Luke felt a bit of tension leave. Wedge was extremely capable and skilled, just the sort of person Luke could rely on.

" Excellent", he answered with more confidence than he felt. " Let's attack them with formation gamma 12". With that the young pilot shot forwards. Formation gamma 12 involved the pilots splitting up to make it harder for enemies to destroy them all. It was generally employed when the enemy had picked off most of the pilots. The maneuver was designed to buy time; when utilized it was assumed that the odds were completely in favor of the enemy.

Luke hoped reinforcements arrived really, really soon.

Princess Leia Organa was attempting to force her way through the jam-packed hallways when she was greeted with a familiar face.

" Han!" she exclaimed, catching his attention.

" Your worshipfulness!" he exclaimed back at her, giving her a mockingly respectful half bow.

" Han, where are you going?" she demanded, trying to keep close enough to him that she could continue their conversation.

" Why, the Falcon, where else?" he responded, shoving a shrieking woman out from between them with a look of disgust.

Leia glanced around. She had been headed for the sleeping quarters of the rebels but by now everyone must have been woken up. She didn't want to leave without contributing to the fight.

" I'm going with you!" she told him, forcing her way to his side. Han hooked is arm through hers and gave her a grin that, (although she would never of course admit it) made her weak at the knees.

" I wouldn't think of leaving without you", he told her.

Darth Vader paced furiously on board the Executor, roaring out orders and skillfully planning how best to organize the fleet in order to achieve victory over the rebels and rid the galaxy of their menace once and for all (and finish the battle so that he could leave this planet and never return). The sith lord glided over to the view port and surveyed the ongoing battle. There were barely any rebel fighters out there, it was simply ridiculous! It would seem that he had overestimated the rebel alliance and the threat it posed to the empire. They were simply a disorganized band of fools that would soon be disposed of. And then Vader felt a burst of fear through the force as one rebel fighter narrowly dodged a trio of shots. The sith lord focused in on the fighter. Was that?

It was! The force confirmed it. Perhaps it was time to communicate with his wayward son. Vader stretched out with his mind.

" _Luke", _he called. _" Luke, give in. There is no way you can win this battle"._ Vader felt a spike of fear from his son's mind.

" _Leave me alone!" _the boy answered. _" Stop playing games with my mind!"_

" _You know that I have not deceived you as Obi Wan, your precious mentor did", _Vader snarled in reply. _" Why do you stay loyal to him?" _And perhaps, deep down, his Luke's loyalty caused the sith lord some pain. He had told Luke nothing but the truth! What had Obi Wan to offer the boy? He could give him the entire galaxy, theirs for the taking! Why wouldn't they boy turn?

" _I trust him!" _Luke retorted. _" Let me be!" _

Vader stared a moment longer at the battle, then whirled around, nearly knocking over one of his officers who barely dodged him in time. The sith lord turned to Admiral Piett.

" Ready my ship", Vader ordered him.

Han and Leia raced aboard the dilapidated Millenium Falcon, having finally escaped from the disorderly hallways.

" Chewie!" called Han frantically. " Chewie!" With a growl the wookiee appeared.

" Fire up the engines!" Han instructed him. " Hurry! We've got to get out there!" He turned to Leia.

" Take one of the guns", he told her, and then raced after Chewbacca, calling more orders after his first mate.

For once Leia did not take offence at his commanding her. The situation was a tense one; there simply was not time for arguing. She turned and hurried to a gun turret.

Luke sent a skillful blast after another tie fighter, then without even looking to see if it had connected he turned his ship around and dodged the shots from two incoming craft. This was bad, they were badly outnumbered… Where was everyone?! The young jedi attempted to put Vader's words from his mind.

"He's lying, he's lying", the boy muttered to himself. " I won't be deceived, I won't!" Suddenly, he saw all the surrounding tie fighters turn and back off, hovering a little distance away.

" What are they doing?" wondered Luke, staring after them in confusion. Then a different tie, with more compact wings shot out from between the massed imperial forces and advanced towards him. Luke realized, to his terror, who the pilot was. He quickly fired two shots at Vader then turned and pin wheeled away, narrowly dodging some shots of the sith lord's. Luke turned, cartwheeled, tailslid, barrel rolled, performed every trick in the book and a few that weren't in it, it was all useless; Vader followed him move for move and the most annoying part of it all was that the sith lord didn't seem to be having any trouble doing it.

Luke's frustration began to mount, overcoming his fear of the dark lord. A bit of anger started to govern his movements and the young jedi found facing Vader suddenly easier, avoiding him just that bit less difficult.

" _Good", _came Vader's voice in his mind. _" Now you see the power of the dark side, of how it empowers you, gives you more, more strength, more reflexes, more power! Use your anger!" _

Horrified, Luke pulled back from the force and took a moment to calm himself. He must keep calm, he must not give in!

" _I refuse!" _he told Vader. _" I'll never turn!"_

He felt the sith lord's irritation.

" _If only you knew the power of the dark side, Luke! You will acknowledge it, eventually. You will acknowledge the part of you that you shove to the side, despite the power it could bring you. And then… you will acknowledge me as your father." _

" _NO!"_ Luke retorted. _" I'll never join you! You are not, you will never be, my father!"_

It was wrong. Luke felt the cruelty of his words. However, at that moment he did not care. He wanted to harm Vader, he wanted the sith lord to feel the pain that he had inflicted on Luke. In that brief moment Luke tasted the sweetness of the dark side, the joy cruelty brings, the relief at being able to let go of one's noblesse and say and do what one wished.

And he liked it.

" _NO! I'll never join you! You are not, you will never be, my father!" _

Those words… they stung deep down in the place that was once Darth Vader's heart.

" _You are not, you will never be, my father!"_ Vader could feel the hatred, the fear and abhorrence behind the sentence. In that brief moment Vader tasted the bitterness of the dark side, the pain caring brings, the knowledge that one is hated by the one that matters to one the most.

And it hurt.

For a moment the pair's roles were reversed, each filled with the darkness and light of the other. And the force trembled…

A.N.: Thank you for your reviews, it made my day reading them! Here is chapter two, I hope you liked it! The next chapter is where the time travel will take place. Until next time, may the force be with you!


	3. Awakening

Chapter 3: Awakening

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this! _

The Millennium Falcon shot through the sky towards the ongoing battle. All aboard were prepared to fight, were prepared to give their lives if that as called for. What they weren't prepared for was what happened while the ship was in the air above the base.

Leia, seated in her gun turret, was peering through her telescope when all of a sudden a strange feeling shot through her. It felt like being doused in freezing water, sitting where one thought a chair was and collapsing on the ground, being caught doing something one definitely should not be doing, hearing a scream tear up the night, thinking there was one more step in the staircase and dropping for a moment, it was everything sudden and startling and unpleasant and yet it was more than that.

It was being doused in freezing water wearing thin clothing on Hoth, sitting where one thought a chair was and collapsing on the ground then falling unconscious and waking up bound and gagged in the darkness, being caught doing something one definitely should not be doing and being caught by the person one loves and esteems the most, hearing a scream tear up the night and realizing that the person who screamed was in one's room and so was whatever that made them scream, thinking there was one more step in the staircase and dropping forever.

It wasn't just sudden and startling and unpleasant; it was also terrifying. Leia gasped and collapsed against her headrest.

Han, giving Chewbacca instructions, was turning to change their altitude when the same icy feeling pierced his heart like a sword. His eyes rolled up into his head as he, too, blacked out.

Chewbacca felt the horrifying, tense sensation fill him as he turned to see why Han had stopped talking. The wookiee fell forwards onto the instrument panel.

Admiral Piett stared at the incredible battle unfolding before his eyes. Both flyers were amazing, incredibly skilled, however, it was easy to see that Lord Vader was winning. There was an opportunity! He hadn't taken it? Why hadn't Lord Vader shot? He could have won- Piett was overwhelmed with a feeling of tense terror. His mouth caught in a scream that never left his lips as the man began to fall to the side.

Luke grinned, caught up in the feeling of power when another sensation gripped at his heart, sweeping every other thought and feeling from his mind except for that of pure, blind terror. The boy lost consciousness.

Darth Vader gasped, his son's comment cutting him to the core. Pain welled up inside of him- then it was replaced suddenly by a shrieking fear that filled every corner of his damaged body until the dark lord blacked out.

When he came to his senses a little, all that he saw and felt was pitch black, empty space all around him. Slowly, gradually, the blackness began to ebb a little and he started to remember himself. He was… he was in the army, was he not? Yes… and he was important, he was pretty sure that he was important. He was a… an admiral! He could see the insignia that he pinned to his pale uniform each morning in his mind. Yes, that was right, it felt right… and he served under… (Here a fearsome black, skull-like mask appeared in his mind) Lord Darth Vader! And he was pretty sure that he was scared of Lord Vader, yes, he remembered that he was very scared of his commander. Terrified, actually. Why was he scared of Lord Vader? (Here the image of a set of crumpled bodies lying on the ground was the one that he saw). Yes, Lord Vader killed his own officers, for almost or no reason at times. This determined he relaxed a little until a new question wormed its way into his brain.

" What is my name?" he wondered. Hmm… it would have " Admiral" in front of it because that was his title. Admiral… Admiral… F… Fir-Firmus, Firmus Piett, that was it! He was sure he could recollect someone telling him that his name meant " strong and dependable". Right now, however, Admiral Firmus Piett did not feel particularly strong or dependable. He just felt a bit scared, now that his senses had awoken enough to know that he had no idea where he was or what had happened but had not awoken enough to get himsef this information.

After a moment Admiral Firmus Piett began to be able to remember how it felt to be inside of his body. He could feel his tongue inside his mouth (which was a bit dry) and one arm which was thrown over his torso and his legs curled up uncomfortably under him. In fact, they were becoming a little numb.

When he thought he remembered how to move them Admiral Firmus Piett attempted to shift his position to one that was more comfortable. This was a bad idea. He succeeded in uncurling his legs from under himself, however he ended up kicking something that bit sharply through his pants and into his skin. Giving a short gasp, Admiral Firmus Piett yanked his legs back.

The sound of the gasp combined with the stabbing pain that was filling his legs helped wake him up. He became aware that he was lying on something that was fairly soft, that his hands and his face, the only uncovered parts of his body, were pleasantly warm and that above the darkness of his eyelids he could catch the faint reddish glow of light. Finally, Admiral Firmus Piett opened his eyes.

The bright sunlight stabbed at them and he quickly sealed his eyes once more, giving them time to adjust. After a moment he began to open them by degrees until, tears leaking from the corners of his eyes at the pain that was still coming from his not yet adjusted eyes, he could survey his surroundings.

He was lying on a soft bed of brilliantly green grass that glowed like an emerald. All around him were enormous red roses on sculpted bushes, some of them so dark that they were almost black. Glances at the bushes Piett realized that he must have kicked a thorny branch. The sun was shining cheerfully down on the admiral.

Slowly Piett got to his feet, feeling a little shaky. Where in the seven sith hells was he and how had he gotten there?!

He looked around him. He could now remember that he had been standing on the bridge of the Executor, but the ship was nowhere near. Piett staggered past a few bushes and nearly tripped over a prone body. He jumped back quickly and surveyed it for a moment.

The body was clothed in worn, poorly fitting clothes of terrible quality that looked, Piett noted with distaste, as though they had been worn for at least two weeks consecutively without being washed. The man wearing these lowly garments possessed a head of brown hair. He was lying on his back snoring loudly.

Gingerly Piett poked the man with his boot. When this got no result he kicked him in the side. The man grunted and rolled over. Exasperated, the imperial admiral gave him a much harder kick and shouted:

" Wake up you idiotic man!"

Finally the man's eyes snapped open, then quickly scrunched shut again as, like Piett, he was momentarily blinded by the bright rays of the sun.

" Leave me alone Chewie, I'm trying to sleep!" he snapped, finally opening his eyes and sitting up. He gazed up at Piett looking startled. Upon noting the man's imperial uniform he yelped, sprang to his feet and hurriedly yanked a blaster from its holster.

" Freeze!" he exclaimed. " Don't move!"

Piett sighed again.

" That's precisely what freeze means", he retorted irritably. " I'm intelligent enough you only had to say it once".

The man glared at him.

" Where are Chewie and Leia? Where have you taken them?!" he demanded.

" I don't know whom you're talking about", Piett informed him. " Last thing I remember I was standing on board the ship I serve on and I got… an unpleasant feeling. When I woke up I was lying in these gardens".

The man pointing the blaster paused and glanced around to ascertain that they were, in fact, in a garden. Upon realizing that this was the case he redirected his attention to Piett.

" Who the kreth are you?" he snapped.

" Admiral Firmus Piett", responded the imperial, annoyed at the other's overbearing attitude. " Who are you?"

His companion eyed him warily.

" Captain Han Solo", he answered finally. " You don't know where we are?"

" I told you I don't", snarled Piett. " You wouldn't have any idea, would you? And put the blaster down! I'm unarmed!"

Solo studied Piett for a moment and deciding that he imperial was telling the truth on both counts he finally returned the weapon to its holster.

" I was on board my ship with a pair of friends before I got that strange feeling you spoke about and woke up- was rudely woken up here", he told Piett.

" Friends? What do they look like?" the admiral enquired. " It would be an excellent idea to gather reinforcements". Truth be told he didn't wish to meet any " friends" of Han Solo's, however, he was in a tough situation and he needed help to get out of it.

" One's a wookiee, tall, hairy-"

" I know what a wookiee looks like!" snapped Piett. " What about the other one?"

Han glared at him.

" I was getting there! She's a human, pretty short, long dark hair".

" Right", answered Piett. " Why don't we go look for them?"

" Alright", agreed Han. The two began to stroll through the garden, keeping a suspicious eye on the other as they went.

They rounded one corner and nearly smacked into an enormous tall shaggy creature that Piett took to be the wookiee they were looking for. The wookiee gave a loud growl and clasped Han against itself roughly. Piett winced. Did he hear something crack?

" Chewie!" exclaimed his companion. " I'm glad to see ya! Do you have any krethin' idea where we are? 'Cause I sure haven't got the faintest idea!"

The wookiee shook its head and gave another unintelligible roar of an answer, then growled questioningly at Piett.

" That's Admiral Firmus Piett", Han told him. " He's the one who woke me up. He says he doesn't know where we are, either".

Piett waited for a moment then snapped at Han.

" You haven't introduced your friend to me".

" Oh yeah!" realized the smuggler and Piett was tempted to clap a hand to his forehead.

" Piett (how disrespectful! thought the admiral), this is Chewbacca" the man told him.

Piett attempted to force something that resembled a courteous smile onto his face and gave a small bow. The wookiee growled something that sounded rather alarming at the admiral. Piett turned to Solo questioningly.

" He says he's pleased to meet you", the man informed him helpfully.

" I am pleased to meet you as well", Piett told Chewbacca. At least this creature had some manners!

" Chewie, have you seen Leia?" Solo asked his friend. " We looked, but we haven't found any sign of her".

The wookiee grunted something and it was finally resolved that they would continue searching for this " Leia" woman. The band began walking through the rows of roses, Piett stuck in between the wookiee and the disreputable looking man. This was really, really bad.

" Luke! Luke, wake up!" Where was that voice coming from? It sounded strangely distant, like it was coming from the end of a long, dark tunnel.

" Luke! Luke, come on!" It was sounding irritated now. There was a pause and he wondered if it was gone.

Suddenly there was a sharp pain on his cheek.

" Luke!" screeched the voice. Apparently not.

Luke Skywalker opened his eyes. He was greeted with the sight of Leia Organa glaring at him.

" About time you woke up!" she snapped. " I've been trying to wake you for nearly five minutes!"

" Sorry, sorry", Luke told her. Suddenly he remembered what had been happening and he became fully alert.

" Where am I? Where'd Vader go? Where's my ship?"

" You're not in your ship Luke!" exclaimed Leia. " I don't know where we are… last thing I remember is being on the Falcon and then I blacked out and I woke up here".

Luke looked around at his surroundings for the first time. He was in a small stone courtyard with a fountain containing a statue of an attractive young woman blowing a kiss (a jet of water) at an invisible person. Surrounding the courtyard was an enormous quantity of lovely rose bushes.

As Luke was taking in his surroundings there was suddenly a loud cry from his right.

" Leia! Luke! Are you two alright?"

Luke turned to see Han, Chewie and a man dressed… in an imperial officer's uniform! He immediately snatched his lightsaber and staggered up from the ground.

" Han, Chewie, there's an imperial there! Watch out!"

" I know, I know!" Han told him. " He's lost, too, so he's joined up with us for the moment. It's alright!"

" An imperial?" asked Leia worriedly, eyeing Piett with mistrust. " I don't know…"

Apparently he recognized her for he greeted her coldly: " Princess Leia Organa. An influential leader of the rebel alliance. I take it this is some rebel trap?"

" That's wrong!" Luke finally spoke up. " None of us know where we are!"

Piett opened his mouth, apparently about to argue some more, however, his eye was caught by the fountain and he ceased talking. Assuming a more formal army stance the man walked past Luke and Leia who stared after him suspiciously. Suddenly the rebels noticed what had caught Piett's attention. A black leather clad arm was showing draped over the other side of the fountain.

" My lord?" asked Piett nervously, fear evident in his visage and tone. " My lord, are you alright?"

Upon later reflection it was obvious to the rebels that they should have run forwards and attacked while Vader seemed to be regaining consciousness. However, they were too surprised to do anything other than stare, petrified with terror.

" My lord, are you alright?" Piett asked Lord Vader. He worked very hard to keep his voice from shaking. After a moment Lord Vader's helmet moved upwards so that it was facing the imperial officer. But, that was strange… Lord Vader's arms and legs looked almost as if they had no limbs in them below the knees and elbows! They looked almost deflated…

" Where am I?" asked the sith lord. Why was it that his voice didn't sound as deep and menacing as usual?

" I-I'm not quite sure milord", Piett told him. " I passed out on the Executor and when I woke up I was in this place… a garden of sorts". As he spoke Piett knew that his explanation was not a very good one. Would Lord Vader choke him as he had so many other officers?

The dark lord began to sit up. That was extremely strange… the arms of his suit below the elbows dangled when he raised his arms. Suddenly the sith lord lost his balance and toppled over backwards into the fountain. His helmet connected with the statue of the woman blowing a kiss and fell off of his head followed by the skull-like mask.

The sweet, unscarred face of a wide-eyed, terrified child stared up at Admiral Firmus Piett.

A.N.: This might just be the longest chapter that I have ever posted on ! It is almost as long as chapters 1 and 2 put together! I thank that deserves extra reviews, don't you? Thanks for reading! The next chapter should be up soon!


	4. Did she just call him?

Vision of the Past

By Blacknayami

Chapter 4: Did she just call him…?

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this!_

Piett staggered backwards, stupefied. What was a child doing dressed in Lord Vader's armor? What was happening?

The admiral heard footsteps behind him and he turned to seem the rebels coming up behind him. They caught sight of the drenched child and froze.

" Is that…", gasped Princess Leia. " No, it can't be… what… where did Lord Vader go?"

The child fixed its gaze on her and the fear on its face morphed into annoyance and exasperation.

" Clearly he is right here, princess", he snapped. The child's voice was rather high-pitched. " Who else did you think-" He froze, seeming almost surprised at hearing his own voice.

" Look kid", Han Solo told him. " I don't know what kinda joke this is, dressin' up as Darth Vader, but it sure ain't funny!"

Again the child looked up, clearly angry, forgetting his surprise.

" I do not joke, Solo. I suggest you refrain from doing so in my presence, for I am not in a particularly humorous mood and am not disposed to find it at all amusing".

The group stared at the child.

" Did he just…" Luke choked out finally.

" Did who just what Skywalker? Last time we met you were fully capable of coherent speech. I do not believe that I have grown so much more menacing in the past two months that I could silence you with my appearance".

Annoyed at getting no reply the child attempted to step forwards, however, he tripped on the overly long legs of his suit and once again toppled comically into the fountain.

When he resurfaced he was panting slightly and latched onto the side of the fountain.

" Well?" the child snapped once more. " Why haven't you drawn your blaster and commenced firing at me Solo? Your reflexes have dulled, it would seem". Here he paused. " What has happened to my voice…?"

The child brought a hand to his mouth and gave a start when it connected with soft skin. After a pause he moved it over the rest of his face then up onto his head. He gave a tiny gasp when it connected with hair, wound a strand of it around his finger and brought it in front of his eyes almost as if he didn't know he didn't have any.

" What…" he whispered. " What has happened to me?"

Luke studied the boy, confused. Then a thought struck him and he stretched out with the force, feeling the child's force presence.

And he stepped back, gasping.

" No", he whispered. " It's impossible. You can't be!"

The child that was Darth Vader looked up at him wordlessly.

" Luke, what is it?" demanded Leia, confused.

" The boy", he finally managed to utter. " He's Vader!"

A soft murmur of voices. The muted rustle of costly silk and velvet, the colorful sparkle of vibrant gems fill the room. Glasses clink together in multiple toasts, mouth-watering dainties are sampled. Bright painted faces smile sweetly, eyes dart quick glances up demurely from under black-coated eyelashes. The agreeable music skillfully played by the excellent musicians is a pleasant background to the seemingly harmless social setting. But appearances can be deceiving.

Lies are whispered, bribes are pocketed. And one guest fingers a packet of powder concealed in their pocket…

" Queen Amidala… look absolutely stunning…"

" An honor to be here, your highness…"

" …Thrilled to see you looking in such good health your majesty! …propose a toast to your welfare…"

And the voice that can be as sweet as honey and as deadly as steel cuts in over their comments as a soprano's soaring notes fly over that of the orchestra.

" Thank you all very much, it is lovely to see you all. Ah, Senator, I trust you wife has recovered from her bout of salpherti? Ah, I'm so glad! Lady Isba, congratulations on the birth of your child, you must let me see him sometime soon! Etc. etc.".

Queen Padme Amidala kept her face pleasant as she conversed, however inside she was all too fatigued. What a farce this was, smiling kindly at those she hated and seeing their hypocritical faces twist into smiles as well! What a stupid masquerade in which she found herself, saying things she didn't mean and listening to others hiss words as venomous as they were supposed to sound sugary and kind! Unable to take any more, she turned quietly to her handmaiden Sabe.

" I will excuse myself in a moment", she muttered. " Tell Dorme to get ready, she will take my place momentarily".

" Yes milady", was the quiet reply.

Padme gave a polite excuse and slipped away.

" Vader?!" exclaimed Han. " No, that's impossible, he can't be! Not that kid!"

" Who did you think I was, Solo?" snapped the child, adding to the pandemonium. " Of course that's who I am! But what has happened? I don't… understand…"

" You must be joking Luke!" uttered Leia. " He's just a little boy! How could he be someone like Darth Vader, a complete monster?"

The child turned to her, his mouth open as though about to protest, however, he hesitated and then was silent.

" He is", Luke insisted. " I can sense it!"

" What questions did Vader ask me on Bespin when… interrogating me?" snapped Han, obviously not expecting a correct answer or anything even close to one.

" I didn't ask you any questions Solo", the child responded.

Han gaped at him. " That's… right", he whispered.

" What was the model of droid Vader used to interrogate me?" Leia asked, clearly disbelieving Luke's revelation.

" It was a KW 198 model, a prototype", the child replied coolly. " The first of its kind. I gave you a long speech about the various aspects of it and how advanced it was before interrogation".

Stunned, Leia turned to Luke. " Luke… he's right! Is he… is he really…?"

" What was the first thing that Lord Vader ever said to me?" asked Piett, speaking up for the first time in a while. The child glared at him.

" Impertinent Admiral", he snapped. " The first thing I ever said to you was " Stop staring and clean up this piece of trash before you join it on the ground" when I executed an idiotic lieutenant".

" It is him", Luke uttered quietly. " I told you it was him. He's right on that count, too, isn't he admiral?"

" Yes", whispered Piett.

" But what happened?" Luke whispered. " How did you become like this?"

" Like… what?" Vader asked finally, his high-pitched voice filledwith confusion. When Luke paused and did not speak the sith lord turned and gazed at his reflection in the fountain's crystal clear water. He recoiled with a gasp.

" Impossible!" the sith lord uttered. " Utterly impossible! I… I'm a child again! How did this-" his gaze snapped up suddenly.

" No…", he whispered. " No, it can't be… that presence…"

Padme stepped daintily through the rows of rosebushes, careful not to make any sound lest guests passing through the garden should hear her and interrupt her fleeting moment of peace. That was funny, those voices she could hear certainly had strange accents… was that a correllian accent she heard? She hadn't invited a correllian to come to her gathering…

Padme followed the path quietly and stepped out into the open courtyard area where the fountain was. She grasped a blaster hidden underneath the folds of her gown…

And found herself catching the gaze of a child she knew and had thought about each day after they had parted company. Her heavily painted face split into a grin.

" Ani!"

The shout rang out like a blaster shot in the suddenly silent courtyard. Stunned for what felt like the millionth time that day the rebels and the imperial admiral stared, mouths agape, as Darth Vader jumped from the fountain.

" Padme?" he gasped incredulously. The regal woman hurried forwards although her elaborate dress hindered her progress considerably. Finally recovering from his surprise the sith lord trapped in the nine year old body ran forwards, dragging the overlong legs and arms of his suit along behind him and threw his arms around the woman. (He ended up ruining her dress because of his drenched state).

After a long embrace the woman finally looked down at the child clasped in her arms.

" Ani… are you alright? You're crying!"

" I'm not crying", Vader lied. " I'm not crying… oh, I missed you so much Padme!"

And after a very long, awkward moment Han Solo finally whispered:

" Did she just call him… Ani?!"

A.N.: Thank you so much everyone who read/reviewed/added to favorites or alerts! I love getting your feedback! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, I had lots of fun writing it! Please review and tell me what you thought, thank you!


	5. Complete and Utter Lies

Chapter 5: Complete and Utter Lies

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this! _

Padme looked down at Vader again and her expression of joy turned to one of puzzlement.

" Ani… what are you wearing?" she demanded.

" Uh…" responded the sith lord hesitantly. He glanced over his shoulder at his stupefied companions. In that split second a resolution was passed that whoever this woman was, everything they told her would be a complete and utter lie.

" Oh it's a… uh… special space suit!" Luke finally spoke up. " For the… uh… atmospheres on certain planets!"

" Ah, I see!" she replied. " Ani, who are these friends of yours?"

Vader turned back towards the crowd, glaring at them to stop any of them from speaking up.

" That's Captain Han Solo, he's a, uh, pilot for the jedi academy".

Han smiled confusedly.

" His first mate Chewbacca", the sith lord continued.

Chewie roared something unintelligible.

" Pr- Uh, Leia Organa, she, um… is Han Solo's… girlfriend?" this quick thinking was voiced as a question.

" What?!" exclaimed Leia furiously. " I mean, uh, pleased to meet you!"

" F-Firmus Piett, the, uh… cook on board the ship!" Vader felt rather proud of this idea.

" And that's Luke S-… Star, uh, Starkiller! He's a jedi at the academy, he's, um… overseeing my training because Obi Wan… was injured", the sith lord finished.

" Everyone, this is Queen Padme Amidala, ruler of Naboo", Vader introduced. " She and I met on Tattooine before my jedi training began".

Padme smiled sweetly at everyone, adding to their already considerable bafflement.

" It's lovely to meet you", she told them.

Luke took charge immediately, casting a glance at the others.

" Well, any friend of Anakin Skywalker's is a friend of ours", he told her, attempting to smile naturally.

" What?" whispered Han. Luke glared at him.

" Thank you very much", Padme told them. " I'm hosting a bit of a party at the moment, won't you come and join in? I'm sure you'd like a change of clothing Ani!" she laughed.

There was a pause in which it was determined that there was not any way to refuse the invitation courteously.

" We would be honored to", Leia told her politely, her diplomatic skills kicking in.

" Excellent, the palace is this way", Padme told them, smiling more than ever.

Han smirked as an idea came to him. He was really confused at the moment, however, there was thing that he had understood. " Alright sweetheart, let's go", he told Leia, hooking his arm through hers with a smug grin.

Normally Leia would have slapped him, however, Padme was watching and the Queen thought that the two were dating.

Leia had no choice but to smile through gritted teeth and allow him to lead her.

" As soon as we're alone he is dead!", she screeched inwardly.

The procession advanced towards the palace.

Vader had no sooner stepped into a chamber in the palace, a change of clothes clasped in his arms when the door burst open and he was followed by the rest of the company who proceeded to bombard him with furious questions.

" Who is that woman-"

" What happened to you? Are you actually Vader-"

" What was that comment about _jedi training-_"

" Is Obi Wan Kenobi that crazy wizard who owes me money-"

" –loud roar-"

" Why did Luke call you Anakin Skywalker? That's the name of his father!"

And at that question, all conversation stopped. Luke and Vader glanced uncomfortably at the ground. Finally, the latter spoke up.

" She is Queen Padme Amidala, an acquaintance of mine. We met on the planet of Tattooine when I was nine years old. Yes, I am Vader. I believe that I have already made that clear. When I left Tattooine it was with jedi who which to train me. Yes, Obi Wan is the same man who you met Captain Solo. I was unable to comprehend your question, Chewbacca".

" He asked if you know where we are", Han supplied helpfully.

" Yes I do", Vader informed him. " I am now of the opinion that we have gone back to Naboo thirty years ago which is when Padme reigned".

" You can't be serious!" snapped Leia. " That's a ridiculous claim with no scientific basis!"

Vader glared at her. " How else would you explain Padme's appearance?" he snarled. " I am absolutely certain that before we arrived here she had been dead" (his voice shook slightly on this) " for twenty years".

" Did you see her die?" Leia demanded.

" I know she died!" he retorted, an edge of pain creeping into his voice. " I know!" Embarrassed at sounding so emotional, he turned away.

Leia glared at him, clearly not satisfied and not willing to back down. However, before she could give voice to a scathing retort Han finally spoke up once more.

" You didn't answer one question", he pointed out to the dimunitive sith lord.

Vader looked up finally. " Which one was that?" he asked. Han wasn't fooled by this display.

" You know which one", he responded.

Vader frowned, turned and walked a little distance away.

" I… was once Anakin Skywalker", he muttered, then turned around abruptly. " But he's dead now!" the sith lord added quickly. " Skywalker is dead! There is nothing of him left! I am Darth Vader!"

Han stared at Vader for a moment. " Then does that mean you're… you're Luke's…"

Vader said nothing, his head bowed. The stunned crowd looked between the unlikely pair.

" Then it's true?" Han gasped hoarsely. " You're his… father?"

Piett, seeing Vader's tense and pained expression, quickly moved to the door. One of the qualities that made Admiral Firmus Piett an exceptional officer was his ability to deal with great shock, which he was currently experiencing.

" Let's give Lord Vader a moment to change", he suggested. The suggestion went unnoticed.

" You're what?!" Leia finally snapped. " Luke, how long have you known about this? Have you been spying on us for him? How could you?!"

" It's not like that Leia!" the boy exclaimed. " He told me on Bespin, I swear I never knew before! Believe me Leia, if I could change it I would!" He paused suddenly at the end of this phrase, realizing whose presence he had spoken in. Luke glanced awkwardly at Vader.

The sith lord's head was lowered, however, at becoming the center of attention once more it snapped up.

" What Luke?" Vader snarled. " You can say what you like to me! I don't give a damn about your opinion of me! Don't think your words can harm me!"

" How can you say something like that to your own son?!" Leia demanded, stepping protectively in front of Luke. " You insensitive monster! Have you ever thought about how anyone felt other than yourself? How could you be so cruel?!"

" Don't you dare presume to lecture me princess!" the sith lord snarled. " You know nothing about me, _nothing_! How dare you speak to me in that manner!"

" And why shouldn't I?" Leia challenged. " I've got a right to my opinion! Not that an oppressive tyrant like you would understand the concept of freedom of speech!"

" STOP IT!" All eyes turned to face Admiral Piett, who looked rather worried. " Please excuse me, milord", he apologized quickly. " I meant no disrespect". When Vader did not seem to be about to force choke him the admiral proceeded. " However, Queen Amidala is expecting us at her party. I believe we should give you time to change Lord Vader…?"

" Indeed", the sith lord answered, clearly desiring to end the conversation.

Sheepishly Leia realized how much of a scene she had been making. She turned and led the way out of the room.

Alone at last, Vader turned away and began the difficult task of removing his armor. There was no zipper at the back, his suit was held in place with tight metal clasps that his now tiny hands could not reach. Finally the sith lord ignited his lightsaber and gingerly cut himself from his leathery prison.

It was a relief to finally be free of the cumbersome garment. Finally his movements were no longer restricted. With the confusion that had been taking place Vader had not had a chance to savor his new body, however, now he was overcome with long-forgotten sensations.

He was cold. When was the last time he had been cold? His suit had regulated his body heat so he had forgotten what it felt to have to layer on clothes. Now that he was damp from the fountain he was shivering and Vader hurriedly pulled on the garments he had been lent.

The clothes were soft and the warmth they lent him were overpowering. All around him brilliant colors assailed his senses, bright paintings, glinting crystal glasses, rainbow colored wall hangings…

And the smells! The clothes smelled like washing detergent, and around him in the room he could catch the sweet aroma of flowers drifting in from the window. Vader stepped over to it and leaned out to look at the gorgeous scene in the garden. It smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful…

Yet somehow he could not enjoy it. After twenty years of being trapped in a mechanical prison he couldn't enjoy this garden.

How could he? Yes, he had gotten a chance to see Padme once more, to clasp her in his arms and witness her joy at seeing him. But what of it? He knew that in the future he would end up betraying her. Her kind smiles only served to increase his sense of guilt, to her and to…

" _NO! I'll never join you! You are not, you will never be, my father!" _

" _It's not like that Leia! He told me on Bespin, I swear I never knew before! Believe me Leia, if I could change it I would!" _

No. The beauty of his surroundings could not bring any joy into his heart now. Vader turned away from the cheerful sunlight outside and returned to the mechanical, artificial realm inside the palace, inside his own broken heart.

_A.N.: Thank you so much for the reviews! I was so happy when I opened my inbox and saw how many I'd gotten! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! By the way, part of the reason I'm writing fanfiction is because I have professional writing aspirations. Therefore feedback is extremely precious to me so I know what I'm doing well and what I can improve on. Thank you for your reviews, please keep them coming! _


	6. Falling

Chapter 6: Falling

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this! _

When the ornate doors to the ballroom swung open all eyes turned towards it expectantly. The news had spread like wildfire-

Queen Amidala had sudden guests, and two of them were jedi knights! Why had jedi appeared on Naboo? Was the queen expecting some crisis? The crowd, having just been gossiping busily, was rather disappointed at the sight that met their eyes.

One scruffy space pirate, one short boy dressed in a strange uniform, one tall man dressed in an equally strange uniform, a pretty woman who was not in the least imposing, a shaggy sort of beast and a scowling child.

Lady Amidala, however, did not seem to notice their disappointment.

" Ladies, gentlemen, allow me to present my jedi friends to you", she announced. " Han Solo, Chewbacca, Firmus Piett and Leia Organa are employed by the jedi. Luke Starkiller is a jedi knight and Anakin Skywalker is a padawan learner".

The crowd murmured polite words of welcome. Noting Amidala's appreciation of the new additions to the party they swarmed around the jedi, hoping to gain her favor.

" What is your employment Mr. Solo? A pilot! Now how interesting! Do you enjoy working for jedi? What-"

" Miss Organa, Miss Organa, what a pleasure to meet you! What is it like working for the jedi? How are you liking Naboo?"

" Jedi Starkiller, have you just recently faced the trials? How many missions-"

" Mr. Piett, how lovely to meet you! Did I hear you were a cook? How interesting! Where did you take your training?"

And of course, there was an enormous crowd around Vader.

" What an adorable boy! Are you really a jedi padawan sweetheart?"

" Look at his lovely eyes! Do you train hard young man?"

" How good of you to learn to defend our galaxy? Do you like the temple Anakin? Why don't you come sit on my lap and tell me all about it?"

Vader backed away hastily from the speaker of that comment, horrified. He was a sith lord! Why did he have to put up with this?! Oh, for the days when the entire populace of the galaxy trembled at the sound of his footsteps!

" Uh, th-thank you", he stuttered. " But I… um… I…"

" Now, now ladies", came the voice of Han Solo. The smuggler placed a hand on Vader's shoulder. " Ani here is a very delicate boy and you need to give him some breathin' space!"

Immediately the females backed off slightly, giving the pair a circle of space to themselves, but still boxing them in on all sides.

" Oh dear!" one exclaimed. " We wouldn't want the sweet boy to get distressed! Is he really very delicate?"

" Oh yes", Han told her, attempting and failing drastically to seem serious. " He's quite sensitive and always very kind to others, but we don't want him getting stressed, now do we?"

" Of course not!" exclaimed the women, smiling maternally at Vader who resisted the urge to force choke the lot of them with difficulty. The sith lord looked up at Han, hoping against hop ethat the smuggler would help him get away from these psychotics, however, there was a grim edge to the smile Han gave him. Vader was on his own. The sith lord quickly thought of an excuse to get away.

" Um, would you let me out, I need to… uh… speak to Padme-erm, Queen Amidala for a moment", he told them.

The women parted reluctantly, some patting him on the arm or the head as he went along. Vader felt faintly sick.

He worked his way through the crowd towards where Padme and Admiral Piett were conversing with a swarm of beings.

Vader was not the only one in trouble. News had spread of Piett's occupation and now…

" Oh really, I wouldn't dream of it", the man pleaded. " I'm sure it wouldn't be at all up to what you are all used to!"

" Nonsense!" laughed Padme. " I'm sure your cooking is wonderful! You must make something for us!" Seeing Vader's approach she turned to him.

" Ani, you must help us convince Mr. Piett to cook us a meal!" she urged him. " He's being very modest, but I'm determined to try something of his!"

Vader's eyes widened in horror.

" Oh no Padme!" he told her, doubting that Piett had ever cooked a proper meal in his life (he was right). " Really, he's not a good cook, you don't want any of his food!"

True as this was, Admiral Piett was used to being good at many things, therefore, he did not appreciate the sith lord's comment. Forgetting who he was speaking to for a moment the officer responded testily: " And what is wrong with my cooking? Would you like to try it sometime?"

Padme smiled. " Well now, you'll have to prove your skills to us and Ani, Mr. Piett!" she exclaimed.

The officer realized his mistake and, horror-struck, began to plead with her, however the young queen had become set upon tasting Piett's cooking and nothing would stop her from doing so now.

" No Mr. Piett, you wouldn't get out of it now!" she laughed. " You've made a statement, now back it up! Why don't you cook breakfast tomorrow! That would be lovely!"

Piett exchanged a terrified look with Vader.

When the party finally broke up at around 1:00 in the morning (quite early for such an occasion), the group from the future finally were able to meet briefly in the kitchens where Piett had just been given a tour.

Chewbacca, being unable to be understood by the other guests, had been left pretty much alone, however, the others were exhausted.

" What will I do?" groaned Piett. " Does anyone here know how to cook?!"

He looked around hopefully, however, nobody spoke up.

" Great", he sighed. " Just great!"

" You have no one to blame but yourself", snapped Vader. " What possessed you to argue with me?!"

" I'm s-sorry my lord", stammered the officer, terrified.

" This is no time to be arguing!" Leia interjected, glad to seize any opportunity to disagree with Vader. " We need to figure out how to get out of here!"

" Do you have any clever ideas?!" snarled the sith lord, annoyed at her interruption.

Leia glared at him, angry that she did not.

" I thought not", Vader smirked.

" Stop it both of you!" Luke exclaimed. " We can all think about this tonight and exchange ideas tomorrow. Admiral… I guess you'll just have to try and serve simple things… look for recipe books, something like that! We can't afford to be disputing trivialties amongst ourselves!"

There was a pause.

" The kid's right", Han spoke up finally. " Let's go sleep".

The group dispersed, leaving Admiral Firmus Piett to learn a new skill in less than eight hours.

Servants showed Luke, Leia, Chewbacca, Han and Vader to their rooms. The group paused uncomfortably outside the doors. Luke hesitantly looked up at the others and found his rebel friends avoiding his gaze.

" 'Night", Han muttered finally, going to her room. Vader gave one last glance at the remaining members of the group and went to his chamber as well. Chewbacca did the same, leaving Luke and Leia together.

" Leia-", the boy began desperately.

" Goodnight Luke", she snarled in reply, glaring at him finally.

" I'm not my father Leia!" Luke exclaimed.

He was answered by her door shutting in his face.

Padme Naberrie Amidala sighed with relief when she finally stepped out of the stiff, jewel-encrusted gown she had been weighted down under all day. Now that she was out from under it the queen felt as light as a feather.

Her heavy, intricate headdress was removed and her handmaidens wiped off all traces of her makeup. Alone at last, Padme stepped over to her closet, choosing a thin lace nightgown from its contents. She pulled it on, the turned towards the beautiful, enticing bed. As she turned her hand hit a crystal glass of water on a small table. She made a grab for the glass but missed. It dropped onto the ground, smashed, and spilled its contents all over the floor.

Padme found herself losing her sense of balance and toppled to the ground after it. Sitting up slowly, unhurt but surprised in a dazed manner, she raised a hand in front of her face and turned it in front of her eyes.

She could not feel her arm.

Padme attempted to sit up and found her head spinning.

What was happening? She had felt fine a few hours ago. The young queen made one last attempt to stand and fell once more, this time falling unconscious.

Her last thought as she lay on the ground bathed in moonlight was of complete and utter terror.

A.N.: Thank you so much for the reviews! They are wonderful, I'm glad that you're liking VOTP enough to read and give me such kind feedback! I'm coming up on a bit of a busy stretch so updates won't be quite as often, I'll try to keep them as regular as possible, but it may have to come down to posts each weekend. Our big school play goes up soon so rehearsals are taking up a lot of my time. I will keep updating as quickly as possible, though, so please keep reading and enjoying! Thank you!


	7. Cookery and Chaos

Chapter 7: Cookery and Chaos

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this! _

Sabe tiptoed into Queen Amidala's chambers. Silently she opened the queen's enormous closet (which was the size of a large room) and selected a gown for that day. She draped the weighty, incredibly expensive material over her arm, picked up the matching shoes and took the elaborate headdress that completed the outfit from a shelf.

The handmaiden shouldered open the door and stepped out quietly. She set the outfit on a low couch, turned around to wake up her queen-

And nearly tripped on the prone body of Padme Amidala.

Admiral Piett sniffed hopefully at a bubbling pot he had placed upon the stove and a moment later was recoiling in disgust. It smelled revolting.

He groaned.

" What will I do?" he whispered despairingly. When it came to commanding surly crews, planning cunning strategies and capturing rebels he was a natural, but in the kitchen he was utterly lost.

Piett surveyed his surroundings. Dirty dishes everywhere, piles of burnt scraps of what was once food pushed wherever he could find room on the crowded counters and a nauseating smell wafting all about the kitchen.

Lord Vader was going to kill him.

Luke Skywalker walked through darkness. He strode over dry, cracked, blackened land, stiff with cold, until a glimmer of reddish light shone tantalizingly from the distance. Luke hurried towards it, hoping to find some source of light and warmth. Slowly as the light grew stronger he began by increments to grow warmer and warmer until the sweat poured down his face and his clothes were plastered to his body. He longed to turn back, how he now longed to turn back! But he found that he was unable to, that his legs carried him forwards, forwards, until he discovered the source of the scalding heat.

It was a bubbling pit of lava. Horrified, Luke found that he was still unable to halt his advance towards the pit! As he grew closer and closer he saw something lying near the edge. It was… a hideous, disfigured corpse, burnt from the pit but incredibly still holding a breath of life inside itself. The figure slowly gazed up at him and tiny streams of ash fell from its head.

" Help…" it gasped hoarsely. Disgusted by the sight yet unable to turn away, Luke's legs carried him still closer to the edge… The figure stared at him imploringly.

" Don't leave me here… son…" it whispered.

Luke was unable to hide his horror at the being's words.

" You're not my father!" he exclaimed. " Leave me alone! Are you trying to kill me, are you controlling my body?!"

" Join me, Luke", choked the thing that was once Anakin Skywalker. " It is… your destiny…"

And Luke, helpless, found his body stepping into the thin air over the pit…

Then woke up with a start.

Sabe just managed to take an unsteady step over Padme. The handmaiden dropped to her feet.

" Milady!" she exclaimed. " Milady, are you alright?" There was no answer.

Trembling, Sabe checked for a pulse. She was reassured by the beating she felt pounding against her fingers. It was weak and erratic, but it indicated that she still had a chance. Sabe pulled out her comlink and dialed the queen's private doctor.

" Come here immediately", she whispered. " It's an emergency".

The doctor, a tall zabrak, stepped hurriedly through the door minutes later.

" What's happened?" he demanded worriedly. Then his eyes fell upon Padme. Quickly he opened his briefcase and began attempting to see what had happened to the beautiful young queen.

Darth Vader woke up early that morning, at 5:30. He was extremely tired so this shouldn't have happened, however, he had a feeling that something was deeply wrong…

He sprang out of bed and outside into the corridor. The force guided him through the lovely, sleeping palace to a room surrounded with guards and a hovertray covered with medical equipment…

" What's happened?!" he demanded. " What's wrong?"

The guards turned to look at him. " Go back to your room", he told Vader. " One guest has had a heart attack".

Vader did not trust the guard's word over that of the force. He stretched out with his mind to feel the presences in the room and was alarmed at how weak the one belonging to Padme Amidala was.

" I must see her!" he gasped, hurrying forwards.

" It will be alright!" snapped the guard. " Leave, everything is under control!"

He was stupefied at the amount of sheer venom contained in the boy's furious gaze. The guard took an uncertain step back… and the child shot forwards, kicked the guard in the stomach, slipped through the hands of the rest of the group and sprinted into the room.

The occupants of the queen's chambers looked up, startled. Vader glanced from face to face. There was a handmaiden, her cheeks flushed from distress, there was a zabrak holding a medical device, there were a pair of droids and-

His eyes fell upon Padme, lying on her bed. Her face was pale but she was able to meet his gaze.

" Who are you?!" demanded the doctor. " How did you manage to get in here? Leave this instant!"

The guards burst into the room after Vader at this moment.

" Stop him!" exclaimed one. " He attacked us to gain access to the queen's chamber!"

" Stop it!" the voice was weak, but the commanding tone stopped everyone in their tracks. Padme propped herself up with difficulty.

" This is my friend, Anakin Skywalker", she told the group. " He is a jedi padawan and I trust him. He is not to be harmed". Taken aback, the assembled beings voiced their apologies to the young boy who had turned away from them as though he were embarrassed at his entrance. However, this was not why he attempted to avoid Padme's gaze.

Tears leaked out of Vader's eyes.

" _This is my friend, Anakin Skywalker. He is a jedi padawan and I trust him. He is not to be harmed". _

Friend. She had said he was her friend. She had said she trusted him. She was protecting her murderer!

" Ani?" Padme asked worriedly. " Are you alright?"

" What about you Padme?" he replied finally, avoiding the question. " Are you… going to be alright?"

Padme turned to the doctor.

" It's… difficult to say at this point in time", he responded. " I would like to say yes, you have responded favorably to the utilization of simple painkillers… but I don't understand what's happening. I can only explain it… as poison. We'll analyze the contents of your blood, your majesty, but until then I would recommend that you rest-"

" No!" exclaimed Padme. " I will not give in to my would-be killer! I will go to breakfast and will watch the reactions of my various guests when they see me appear completely well!"

" What?!" exclaimed the doctor. " Your highness, I believe that to be a highly dangerous course of action and plead that you reconsider!"

" No", Padme told him. " I appreciate and am grateful for your concern, but I believe that this is part of my duty as queen of Naboo".

" Padme, please!" Vader gasped. " You must be reasonable-"

" Let me assure you Anakin, what I do is what I consider to be the only proper course of action open to me", she told him in a tone that left no room for argument. The queen turned to Sabe.

" I believe you laid out a gown for me…?"

When the doors to the banquet hall of the royal palace finally swung open to admit Queen Amidala, the company was buzzing with curiosity. Why was the queen so late? Did it relate to the jedi she had brought to Naboo?

Padme smiled at them gently.

" Please forgive my tardiness", she apologized. " A matter of extreme importance arose and I fear it was of the sort that I was forced to have you wait and address it immediately".

She took her seat at the front of the table and motioned to the servers.

Padme had not forgotten that this meal was to be cooked by the jedi chef and she was looking forwards to how the meal would taste. Her (and everybody else's first impressions) was not, however, favorable regarding Piett's cooking.

The servers returned laden with trays of blackened, unrecognizable scraps of what might once have been food. Some of it was smothered in a smoking grayish liquid that was possibly supposed to be sauce.

Finally Piett himself entered, carrying a tray which he placed before Padme with a bow.

" Your majesty", he uttered formally.

It took all of Padme's diplomatic skills to keep from showing her disgust.

" Thank you Mr. Piett", she told him calmly. The company, seeing her calm expression, realized that they were actually to be expected to consume the mess laid before them. Not to do so would be to lose the queen's favor…

Her fork laden with charred "food", Padme took a delicate bite.

It was revolting! All this was was food cooked so much that it was burnt to ashes!

Padme summoned up all of her self-control and took another bite.

An inordinate number of guests suddenly found it necessary to take brief trips to the washroom that meal where, if one was standing directly outside these chambers, the sound of violent vomiting could be heard.

Still, Queen Amidala continued choking down mouthfuls of the garbage served to the company and so the guests were forced to return and attempt to follow her example.

Finally, one senator could take it no longer. He pushed his plate onto the floor and stood up suddenly.

" This is ridiculous!" he exclaimed. " I refuse to continue this farce any longer! Queen Amidala, these lumps of ash we have been served are clearly not fit for consumption! I am insulted at being served such garbage!"

There were murmurs of agreement amongst the guests. Piett felt panic welling up inside of himself. He had to convince the company that he _was_ a cook!

The admiral took a deep breath and stepped forwards.

" GARBAGE!" he roared in a voice of thunder. " You dare presume to call my cooking _GARBAGE_?! I studied on the planet of D'Gutin for seven years learning to cook, this is d'gutinese gourmet! How dare you insult me in such a manner?!" And he threw himself at the unfortunate man.

Taking advantage of the momentary chaos, Padme hurried over to convenient tall, ornamental vase and emptied the contents of her stomach into it. As she turned around she felt the previous night's queasiness come upon her and she staggered slightly, her face tensing up with pain…

And a guest smiled to itself.

_A.N.: Hi everyone! Judging by the number of reviews you didn't like chapter 6 as much as the others so I hope this one makes up for it! Thank you very much for reading! P.S. The name of the planet that Piett supposedly studied cookery on, " D'Gutin" came from the work " disgusting". _


	8. The Price of a Miracle

Chapter 8: The Price of a Miracle

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this!_

The man surveyed the banquet hall calmly. Really, this disorder was so- so uncivilized! Those men brawling in the corner was an example of how easily courtesy was replaced these days with coarse brutality. It was revolting to watch! The sort of behavior that you would expect from aliens, rather than humans.

His lip curled with disgust.

Well, he would have to ignore this disorder for a moment. The man straightened his costly overcoat of shimmersilk as he scanned the room for the one being of any real sophistication or refinement gathered there. Ah, yes. Queen Amidala was profiting by the current state of disorder of the company by, ahem, emptying her stomach, into a large ornamental vase.

He frowned as he got a closer look at the vase. Why, the heavy piece of porcelain must have cost several thousand credits! Couldn't she have utilized one of the tureens their revolting excuse for breakfast had been served in instead? Perhaps she was not quite so sophisticated as he had thought.

The hunter advanced.

///

In the corner of the room Padme struggled to regain her composure. She must overcome this weakness! She must be strong for her people and for Ani! She straightened her back and began to turn around, summoning up her usual enchanting smile. It was halfway onto her face when she nearly collided with an elderly gentleman who was one of her guests.

" Are you alright, milady?" he asked her. His face was suitably worried, however, his eyes contained a level of gloating that could not be concealed.

" You", she hissed furiously.

" Me", he answered calmly. " Feeling a bit queasy your highness?"

" I'm going to kill you", she snarled, reaching into the folds of her dress for the blaster that she always concealed on her person.

She was quick, however, Padme's reflexes were not as quick as his. He had drawn a thin, curved silver cylinder which he pointed at her head.

" Now now your majesty", he told her, lightly reproving. " Such violence is really quite below you".

Padme opened her mouth to talk, then gave a start and coughed violently into her palms.

They came away bloodied.

" Oh my", exclaimed the man in false worry. " You really are feeling ill, aren't you?"

Padme glared at him. " Curse you Count Dooku", she snarled.

///

Vader was hovering beside Admiral Piett's fight, irritated at the man's audacity to fight as a high-ranking imperial officer, yet comprehending the need for Piett's acting offended when the force carried a warning of danger to him.

The danger was directed at Padme.

The sith lord sprang onto the table, casting around frantically for the woman. He saw her standing in a corner, glaring furiously at a tall, white-haired man who was all too familiar to Vader. The sith lord snatched up his lightsaber.

" Get away from her Dooku!" he exclaimed, fury clouding his vision. He leaped at his hated adversary, igniting the weapon in midair.

///

As Vader attacked, Luke also felt the danger throbbing through the force. He turned and ran after his father, shoving guests out of his way. He arrived just in time to witness the two pulsating scarlet blades clash.

" You beast", snarled Vader. " What have you done to her?! What have you done?!"

Dooku, the taller and stronger of the two, forced the other sith back.

" Temper, temper Skywalker!" he remonstrated. " That will get you into trouble if you're not careful".

Luke pulled his lightsaber from his belt. He could feel the danger directed at Queen Amidala, therefore he would have to side with his own enemy. The boy ignited his weapon and stabbed at Dooku who parried the blow with ease.

" It took less effort to block that then to swat a fly", he informed the boy. " Aren't you supposed to be a fully-fledged jedi knight?"

Luke gritted his teeth and continued fighting. Dooku had exaggerated; Luke was both skilled and powerful, however, he was not used to attacking with a partner. More often than not he found himself hindering instead of helping Vader.

" Why, this padawan is more skilled than you!" exclaimed Dooku. " What are the jedi coming to these days?"

And with a skillful blow he disarmed his opponent and, reaching out with the dark side, sent his hurtling headlong through the air until he collided with the wall.

" Luke!" gasped Vader, turning to follow his son's path and nearly taking a blow from his opponent in the process.

" Ignore him, Skywalker", the count told him. " He has not your youthful potential. Interestingly enough it is not the light side I sense in you… what has taken place since your training began?"

Vader leveled a glare of pure hatred at Dooku.

" I watched and I waited and I hated with every fiber of my being", he responded viciously. " And hatred cannot be bottled up. It must eventually break out, multiplied by every second it was suppressed until it is a wave that sweeps away all opposition".

Dooku raised his eyebrows. " Interesting", he commented finally. " However, I do not believe that your hatred is quite sufficient in this case, Skywalker", and with one strong blow he disarmed the child.

Vader's lightsaber soared through the air and landed on the ground near Luke.

" Your lightsaber is far too large for you Skywalker", Dooku remarked, advancing calmly as Vader retreated warily. The count returned his lightsaber to his belt.

" And its crystal possesses the bloodred hue of the sith", he continued. " Something momentous has occurred. I'm quite interested to learn what, however I fear that that riveting conversation shall have to wait for the moment. Now that there's a bit of an audience here I intend to take full advantage of their presence".

And he smacked Vader upon the head so hard that the boy tumbled to the ground, nearly unconscious.

" Anakin!" exclaimed Padme, running to him.

" Silence!" roared Dooku, leaping onto the table. All conversation ceased and all eyes turned to him.

" Much better", he commented with a satisfied smile. " Now, to business. I do hope you all will pardon the interruption. Now -" he reached out with one Velmorian leather-clad foot and kicked a platter of food off of the dining table and onto the ground. Piett flinched.

" –let me put this plainly. Queen Amidala is sick. I can assure you that she is not at all likely to recover and within three days her illness shall, regretfully, be terminal, unless a miraculous cure should be discovered".

He reached into one inside pocket of his heavy dark crimson cloak and pulled out a tiny vial full of clear liquid.

" Perhaps one will be found, who knows! However, such a lovely event taking place would necessitate something to manifest the miracle. An exchange is an excellent way of putting it. Would you jedi have heard of a Lord Sidious?"

He waited until his audience looked suitably terrified and dumbfounded.

" As far as I know he is an excellent producer of miracles".

Dooku swiveled round suddenly, his cloak sweeping out dramatically behind him as he faced Padme.

" Skywalker is the price of a miracle Queen Amidala. Lord Sidious is interested in furthering his training", he told her. " Do not forget that your people need you. A fair enough bargain, is it not? I shall await your answer from the dark tower of the Lake District".

And the horrified crowd blocking the doorway suddenly found themselves pushed aside by a strange, invisible force. Swiftly Count Dooku swept out, leaving terror and confusion in his wake.

" Don't worry Ani", Padme finally whispered. " I won't have you be apprenticed to that monster Sidious! We'll find a way to stop them, somehow!"

Vader turned away from her, tears coursing down his face.

He had failed his true love yet again.

_A.N.: Hello everyone, thank you for your great reviews! I hope that you liked this chapter as well. The next chapter will be out soon. Thank you for reading! _


	9. I'd rather die

Chapter 9: I'd rather die…

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this!_

Count Dooku paced his chambers within the dark tower of the Lake District of Naboo. That boy, the hatred that had shone from his eyes that had been tinted a yellowish orange shade, the fury and pain that he transformed into the power of the dark side, the crimson lightsaber that he had wielded… when had Anakin Skywalker ceased to be a jedi and become a sith? How could that mere child have gained so much power in so little time?

There was only one answer that made sense, but Dooku was loath to admit it.

Why take the limited power of an elderly man when one could have a young, sprightly child with the power to shape the destiny of the entire galaxy? Why push aside strength for loyalty? Loyalty was not a quality that the sith valued.

Power was. Darkness was. Anger was. Hatred was.

Dooku's steps trod a path into the thick carpet he paced back and forth on. His still-handsome face was creased with worry, confusion and anger. Anger that he had been supplanted so easily. He, Darth Tyrannus, Count Dooku of Serenno! Rich, clever, sophisticated, the only things he lacked were youth and power.

It always came back to power with the sith.

Dooku fingered the heavy crimson shimmersilk cloak that hung from his shoulders. The thing was worth enough credits to nourish an Outer Rim family for a year. Dooku liked wealth, he liked being able to purchase any and everything material he desired. But credits couldn't buy him power.

Annoyed at himself for wasting time in such a manner Dooku finally stood still, restlessness coursing through his veins. He sat down at his expensive mahogany desk and rang for a servant. Not a droid, a real flesh and blood being. Dooku couldn't stand being served by empty, emotionless droids. He liked having beings around to impress with his strength and intelligence, by his sheer presence.

_Clearly your master does not value your strength and intelligence…_

No! He must put such thoughts out of his mind! When he was more composed he would address them at his leisure. He was Count Dooku. He would not be unsettled by a child possessing some raw skill.

_Raw skill is more valuable to your master than wisdom and discipline… _

This was unbearable!

The heavy wooden doors set with sparkling gems swung open and a maid entered, curtseying politely.

" What can I do for you, Count Dooku?"

Dooku looked up. Normally the tone of reverence and awe he heard would have given him great satisfaction, however, now he found himself dissatisfied.

Why _Count_ Dooku? Count was a very nice title, yet it lacked something. Something a little… a little more _powerful._

_Emperor_, now that was a pleasant title. Carrying strength and force, a title which wisdom and intelligence would be required for it to be used.

Emperor Dooku… it had a nice ring to it.

Dooku remembered the presence of the serving girl.

" Have my dinner brought up at once", he ordered her.

" Yes sir", she responded, her eyes still filled with devotion.

Sir… what would suit him more was something like _your majesty_.

For the first time, Dooku thought of betrayal. He sat in his fancy leather chair lost in dreams of grandeur and power until the doors swung open once more.

" Your dinner, sir", the girl told him, placing the tray before him and curtseying once more.

" Thank you", he answered, nodding his dismissal.

Dooku's dinner was served on a heavy silver tray. The food had been arranged artistically on fragile porcelain plates and bowls, with his favored beverage (sparkling alderaanian wine) glinting with a soft amber light from a tall crystal glass.

The dishes were prepared by the most excellent of chefs. Before him were Ithorian shellfish, mouscab from the moons of Hathos, Chandrilan proylefsaq, Saleucamise kitedari, Felucian hoylata'al. The most delicate and delicious gourmet foods were piled before him and yet he was unable to take a single bite.

Dooku could not put the image of that young child with hatred shining from his eyes, more intense than the scarlet lightsaber he wielded. The sith lord rose and went to his holocommunications chamber. He placed a call and presently the hooded visage of Darth Sidious came into view.

" My master", murmured Dooku, kneeling before the other sith with something that he had never experienced towards the other before: resentment.

" What has happened, my friend?" asked Sidious, false concern in his voice. " I trust everything proceeds as planned? I am certain that you are fully capable of carrying out my wishes".

Normally these words would have Dooku glowing with pride, however now they only served to heighten his fury.

" Everything is proceeding as planned, my master", he informed Sidious. " However, something rather disturbing has come to pass".

" Continue my friend", urged the older sith lord.

" I confronted Queen Amidala today. I have managed to successfully poison her, the woman is a fool for taking part in toasts. Skywalker has already arrived in the company of other jedi. He attacked me after I made our plans quite clear to him. And when he attacked, my master, it was with the fury of the dark side and his blade was the red of the sith".

Sidious was silent for a long moment. " Today I felt a shifting in the force", he uttered finally. " Brought on, it would seem, by young Skywalker. My friend, allow me to assure you that I had no part in training the boy. Why indeed would I have sent you on this mission if I had?"

Dooku was not fooled, however he dared not challenge such a statement.

" Thank you for your assurance, my master", he responded. " What would you have me do?"

Sidious smiled humorlessly. " This does not alter my plans; indeed, perhaps it aids them. My goals are the same; to drive Skywalker to darkness with the death of dear Queen Amidala. Continue your mission my friend, I am sure it proceeds excellently".

Dooku bowed his head in submission, however at this parting there was an unusual sentiment of distrust between the pair of sith.

///

" Your majesty, we've narrowed it down to a dozen poisons from the tests performed upon your blood. We're hoping that Dooku has chosen a Mygeetan elixir, its rare and expensive, however we should be able to get an antidote if that were what was used. However…"

" However?" Padme prompted her doctor.

" However, we fear that an Etydorian quadrant poison may have been employed. This method of preparing poison utilizes a quadrant formula which ensures that an antidote may only be made from the poison at the moment that it was completed or else it will not cure the afflicted. If that is the case here…"

" We will be unable to produce a cure", Padme completed. " I understand. Continue with your testing doctor, there is no need to fear until a clear verdict has been reached".

The doctor left. Padme turned to the child huddled in the window seat with his back to her, staring at the lovely garden outside.

" Ani", she uttered softly. " Ani come, don't give up so soon".

The boy said nothing. Padme sighed and went to him.

" Ani, I know that you're upset but there's no need to worry yet".

Vader turned to face her suddenly. " You've been poisoned Padme! When will you think that it is time to worry?!" He glared up at her furiously. Others would have assumed that he was only being irritable, however Padme could see the fear in his eyes.

" Ani", she sighed, pulling him to her. " You did the best you could. How could you expect to beat someone like Dooku who has years more experience at fighting than you?"

" Because I already have", Vader muttered.

" Pardon me?" asked Padme, not having heard the quiet comment.

" Because I just should have", the boy responded finally. " You shouldn't die Padme! You're too good, your people depend upon you! No, I will have to cede to his demands".

" No!" exclaimed Padme. " No Ani, anything but that! I refuse to allow it! I'd rather die than see you become a sith!"

Vader flinched. Padme embraced him more tightly. " Dooku and Sidious are twisted and corrupt, with all of their humanity ripped away Ani. I can't let that happen to you. You're a good person. You don't deserve that fate, to live in a, existence of fear and anger. That's not living Ani. That's just having a body that walks and talks and fights. That's not living".

Vader pulled away from her, shaking with emotion. " Then what do you propose we do?" he snapped. " How will we get out of this mess?!"

At that moment the doors swished open and the doctor reentered. " Milady, we have finished our examination. Our result is…"

_A.N. Hello everyone, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! How was that bit of angst at the end? Do you like Count Dooku as the villain? I wasn't sure who to use and considered several characters(Aura Sing and Jango Fett among them) but decided that he was the one I would use in the end. Thanks for reading and please tell me what you thought! _


	10. A Crazy Dream

Chapter 10: A Crazy Dream

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this!_

" … that our worst fears have been realized. Dooku has used an Etydorian quadrant poison. Your only hope is to reason with him", the doctor muttered, averting his eyes. " I'm sorry your majesty".

Padme's face remained calm. " Thank you doctor", she replied. " There would be no way of finding a cure from my blood samples?"

" None your majesty", he answered. " Although poisons of the etydorian quadrant are made from the same formula, an enormous variety of ingredients can be used. Side effects will be nausea, numbness in limbs and a tendency to lose consciousness. I…" the professional tone left his voice. " I wish there was more that I could do…"

" Do not despair doctor", uttered the queen. " I have no intention of giving up so soon".

He bowed and exited from her chambers. Padme turned to the suddenly rather quiet boy sitting next to her.

" Don't worry Ani", she told him. " I have a few ideas. I'd like to talk to your jedi friends".

///

Padme sat in a luxurious chamber before Vader, Leia, Han, Luke, Piett and Chewbacca. She had just finished explaining what had happened to them.

" Because of the urgent nature of this dilemma I request your assistance in recovering the antidote", she told them. " Will you help me, jedi?"

Luke hesitated. As he was the one she believed to be a fully-fledged jedi knight this request had been delivered to him. The boy was uncertain of what to say.

How could he help her? He was just a moisture farmer from an obscure Outer Rim planet! He had barely learned how to fight! This sounded… like madness!

That sounds like Han talking, a voice in his head pointed out. Aren't jedi supposed to help those in need?

Yes, but I'm not a proper jedi! He argued with himself. How can I be expected to do this?

And yet, hadn't he done crazier things than confront a sith lord head on?

He had penetrated the Death Star and rescued Leia from it. He had destroyed the space station in a minuscule one-man ship. Come to think of it, he already had confronted a sith lord head on! He had confronted Vader in Cloud City...

Vader. Luke glanced at his father surreptitiously. Since their arrival Vader had publicly hugged someone. He had cried before the group. He had displayed caring for another being.

Luke tried not to be hurt that that being was not him, the sith lord's son.

Wasn't this proof that the man still had a chance of redemption?

All eyes were on him. He would decide whether they attempted to help out this queen. It was up to him.

_What if Vader could be redeemed? What if…?_

No Luke, you're being stupid. This is just part of your silly attachment to the idea of having a father that you're still harboring after all these years.

_What if…?_

See what happened last time. Are you so quick to forget why your right hand is a mockery of flesh and blood?

_What if…? _

He's not your father. Not really. A father is supposed to protect his son. He's supposed to love his son, not only care about his child's power and what he can gain through his offspring.

_But if there's a chance, even the slightest one…_

Perhaps he was foolish. Perhaps he was stupid. Yes, it was a crazy dream. But having a father wasn't a dream that he could give up on. If there was a chance to bring out some humanity in Vader…

" Of course we'll help you", Luke spoke up finally with an air of self-assuredness that he did not feel a bit of. " It would be an honor".

///

Five hours later a handmaiden knocked tentatively upon the door of the royal palace's library where the group had holed themselves up in.

" Come in", called the voice of Queen Amidala.

The woman entered and for a moment did not recognize where she was.

The library had once been an enormous, well-lit and comfortable room in which it was easy to find whatever information one desired.

Now it was simply a mess.

Holochips were scattered over a long table. Three holoprojectors were currently in use, all of them displaying multi-colored, slowly revolving maps. Old fashioned books and newer datapads were strewn on every surface available. The group of jedi and Queen Amidala were perched wherever a bit of space was available. This included the tops of chairs and sliding ladders attached to the tall bookshelves.

Queen Amidala was currently seated on a hover trolley usually utilized for the purposed of towing books along behind one. She had a laser pointer in one hand and an old paper map in another. Her hair had not been properly arranged (it was in a simple braid) and she wore no makeup as well as a simple tunic and pants.

Pants! While she was entertaining guests!

It took the handmaiden a moment to recover enough from this impropriety to finally speak.

" Milady, perhaps you would like dinner to be served to you and your guests in here?" she asked. Although the handmaiden wasn't sure if " guests" was the proper word of description for these beings. Visitors, even, was stretching things. They looked like common riffraff to her. Disreputable no-gooders who ought to be deposited in the palace dungeons this instant.

Why was Queen Amidala tolerating the company of such low beings?

Although perhaps they were spies. Spies weren't supposed to look important. If these were spies they were doing excellently at seeming completely unimportant. The handmaiden's less than courteous thoughts were interrupted by Queen Amidala's reply.

" Thank you Dane, that would be lovely".

" Very good your majesty", the woman replied, curtseying and exiting the chamber. She supposed it was none of her business, but one couldn't help but wonder…

///

Admiral Piett couldn't help but consider how singularly peculiar his situation was. What had happened to the stiff imperial admiral and the tyrannous sith commander?

Here the admiral was, his uniform unpressed for the first time in years, utilizing a stack of dangerously wobbling datapads as a chair while the commander was sitting on the rungs of a ladder attempting to balance a plate of food on his lap, eat the food, read sections from the datapads he pulled from the shelf behind him and converse with a young man who happened to be a dangerous rebel criminal.

It was strange how things changed.

" Because of the placement of the old tower, we should be able to penetrate from around here", Queen Amidala continued, motioning with her laser pointer.

She was showing them a map of the dark tower of Naboo's lake district where this Count Dooku had holed himself up in.

The monument was called the " dark tower" because for almost two standard years thousands of prisoners were held in it and often tortured for information by a tyrannous man who had gained control of Naboo. He had kept all who dared to oppose his rule in the tower. This had taken place 500 years ago. The tower had been built by him for this purpose on top of another castle that had once resided on the spot.

The swampy region had been flooded sending this first building into depths of the enormous Lake Varykino. The queen proposed that they enter the remains of this ancient construction in an attempt to penetrate the tower, capture Dooku and gain possession of the antidote.

" Are we all agreed?" she asked finally. " I know that there is a chance of discovery, however last I knew of it this room" she motioned with the laser pointer, " was used for storage purposes only. There shouldn't be too many guards there although there may be some in the ruins".

" I say there's only so much we can figure out here", Han drawled. " It'll come down to the same thing: we need to go there and see if we can get in, and soon".

" Agreed", Padme told him. " I propose starting tomorrow. How does that sound?"

The group agreed. The conversation then turned to other matters.

" How did you and V-Anakin meet your majesty?" Luke asked her, his eyes daring the child sith lord to get out of having this story told.

Padme smiled. " It was on the Outer Rim planet of Tattooine", she replied. " Naboo had been taken over by the Trade Federation and I, in the company of two jedi knights landed on the desert planet to escape and obtain parts for our ship".

" Padme, I don't think…" Vader began.

" It's a nice story Ani!" the queen told him laughingly. " I'm surprised you haven't told everyone it already! They are your friends after all!"

Vader opened his mouth to interject, however Luke cut in. " You landed on Tattooine…?" he prompted.

" Ah, yes", Padme continued. " There Ani brought us to his home to shelter us from a sandstorm. Do you know what the first thing he ever said to me was?"

Vader's eyes widened with horror. " Padme, please", he interrupted worriedly. " I really don't want this story told".

Padme frowned. " Your past shouldn't be a secret Ani!" she told him. " You have nothing to be ashamed of!" Here she resumed her story. " He asked me " Are you an angel?"

Vader buried his face in his hands. That's it, he thought. I have lost all of the respect that Piett might have harbored for me. As long as it doesn't get out…

" Really?" Leia asked dubiously. " He asked you if you were an angel?"

" He did", Padme smiled. " It was a sweet thing to say, wasn't it?" And she turned her affectionate gaze on the mortified sith lord and continued.

" We managed to make a bet with a toydarian to get the parts we needed for our damaged ship from him. The bet depended on Ani's winning a podrace, the Boonta Eve. What he didn't know was that we had bet his freedom on the race as well".

" You bet what?!" Han exclaimed.

Padme looked surprised. " Why, Ani's freedom", she replied. " He was a slave". Her gaze went from one stunned face to another.

" You didn't know?" she asked surprised. " Ani…"

" It's fine", the boy muttered, struggling to control his anger. He had lost control around her one time, he couldn't again! Cracks began to appear on the windows…

" I… I'm sorry", the queen whispered. " You really didn't tell them? Anakin, it's not something to be ashamed of! You didn't have a choice!"

Vader said nothing. His fists were clenched.

" Ahem… this food is excellent", Piett supplied after an awkward pause.

" Oh yes, I was meaning to bring that up!" Padme replied. " It's D'Gutinese gourmet, as you must know Mr. Piett, the D'Gutinese diet consists almost entirely of fish and vegetables pickled in various preserves. They never bake anything".

Piett's eyes widened with horror, shrinking back from the queen's accusatory gaze.

She knows we've been lying to her! He realized.

What will we do?!

_A.N.: I'm sorry that this update was later than usual! My school play was going on and I didn't have time to work on this fic. I'll try to update more quickly now that it's over. This is my second longest chapter, though, I hope that makes up for it! Constructive criticism is always appreciated as well as feedback on what you liked so I can keep that up. I am writing fanfiction to improve my writing skills. Thank you to everyone who read and everyone who reviewed! _


	11. Just a Quick Moment

Chapter 11: Just a Quick Moment

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars, George Lucas does and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story! This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing it! _

Padme's eyes bore into those of Admiral Firmus Piett's with a startling intensity.

What can we tell her? He screamed inwardly. She'll never believe our story! What will we do…?

" I'm sorry for Piett's, uh, misconduct your highness", Han spoke up finally. " He does like to pretend he's a specially trained cook an' all that. He don't mean no harm, though".

Padme looked up at him, her fiery gaze transferred from Piett to the smuggler. She searched his eyes intensely, a slight edge to her that had not been there previously, an edge that spoke of strength… and of danger.

" I see", she uttered softly. " Well, of course I shall accept your apology. No harm was done".

You shall accept it, thought Vader shrewdly, searching her as she searched Han. But do you believe it? No, I do not believe that you believe Solo's words. You will accept the apology and the explanation… for now.

///

The group finally left the library, each of their minds full to the brim with thoughts, worries, concerns, suspicions. It had been established that instead of attacking during the daytime, they would travel close to the Lake District that night, prepare for their invasion during the day and attempt to penetrate the Dark Tower under the shroud of night.

Leia departed studying a small datapad describing the history of the Dark Tower when she felt a strong arm twine around her waist.

" Are you working your worshipfulness?" Han asked, a playful tone in his voice. " You've done plenty of that today! Isn't it time for something a little more… relaxing?"

Leia tensed up upon his contact, however, remembering that they were supposed to be a couple she allowed it, trying not to wonder if she would shake off the arm if she could.

" We… we've got important things to plan for", she pointed out, avoiding his gaze. " There isn't time for relaxing".

Han reached down and tilted her chin up, forcing her to meet his gaze. " Just a quick moment", he told her. " Surely that would be alright?"

She hesitated, and his playful expression turned into a frown. " Perhaps you're right", he grunted. " We are busy an' all that. Well, I'll see you in a few hours your worshipfulness". And with that he turned to go.

Leia hesitated. _Just a moment_, whispered a voice in her head, tantalizing, mersmerizing… _Just a quick moment_._ Surely that… would be alright?_

" Wait!" she called without really thinking. Han stopped, nearly at his door, then slowly turned to face her.

" I suppose… what did you have in mind?" she asked finally.

The smuggler grinned and swaggered back. That annoying swagger of his… he acted like he knew what she would do before she even did it. She didn't like the idea of someone being able to read her mind. She didn't like how he always _did_ know what she would do, how she felt that he knew something glaringly obvious that she didn't.

" Han…" Leia whispered softly. The smuggler stepped closer and closer to her until she could feel his hot breath on her face. His hands reached up and gently grasped the sides of her face.

" Something like this", he answered her huskily. He stared deeply into her eyes for a second then tilted his head slightly. A look she had never before seen crossed his face: a soft smile that carried a sort of fond affection within it. Han leaned forwards a bit more, closing the distance between them and brushed his lips gently against hers. It wasn't at all like how Leia had (not of course that she would visualize such a thing) pictured Han's kissing to be like. She had thought it would be rough and passionate, yet somehow just that soft touch had carried far more emotion than any passionate kiss. It had seemed more intimate, more… more everything.

Leia realized that she had closed her eyes. She opened them now, looking up at Han. Another out-of-place expression was on his face: the man looked… vulnerable somehow. For Leia realized that she could crush him now, now that he had finally come out from behind his brash, stoic exterior.

She held Han's heart in her hands…

Leia caught his shoulders, pulled herself up onto the tips of her toes and placed a kiss upon his mouth. She realized now that she liked to see Han as strong. This vulnerability… it scared her. Because she had begun to rely upon the man's strength.

She had begun to rely upon Han Solo.

" Just a quick moment", she whispered, then turned and darted away.

///

Darth Vader was sprawled upon his bed when the tugging at his mind came.

" _Father", _called Luke. _" Father, I must speak to you". _

Vader sat up quietly. He slid off the bed (it always surprised him how far the floor was from the bed) and padded over to the large window. He opened it and peered out. There was his son, already standing there waiting for him.

" What is it Luke?" he asked. It was so different seeing Luke without damaged eyes and the bloody tint of his mask's eyepieces. His son's image had been cloudy and indistinct, now it was bright, resplendent with life and color. So different…

" Father, there are some things I must know", Luke told him. His son made to continue, however this statement raised a question in Vader's mind.

" Have you, then, accepted the truth?" he asked.

" I've accepted the truth that you were once Anakin Skywalker, my father", the boy responded. Impertinent child!

" That name no longer has any meaning for me", Vader snarled, his high-pitched child's voice annoyed.

Luke's eyebrows rose. " And yet I've seen you with this woman, Queen Amidala", he responded. " You seem to be quite attached to her. Do you really mean to tell me that you feel nothing for her?"

Vader glared, yet could find no reply. How could he deny caring for Padme, whose love for him would prove to be her undoing? How could he deny her her safety, her happiness, and even his love and then deny that he ever felt anything for her?

" I thought not", the boy answered, sounding triumphant, yet carrying something else in his tone. Was that sadness?

Luke stepped closer to the dark lord.

" Father, please tell me", the boy pleaded. "Is Queen Amidala… my mother?"

Vader, who had been avoiding his son's gaze, now turned and looked at him once more.

" Do not involve yourself in affairs that have nothing to do with you!" he snapped. " You have no right-"

" No right?!" exclaimed his son. " No right to know the identity of my own mother?! How could you deny me something like that? You may feel nothing for _me_, but wouldn't my mother want me to have a name to remember her by?"

Aha, realized Vader. That was it! That was where the sadness came from. His son believed that Vader felt nothing for him and cared only for his mother.

Isn't it true? Asked a small voice in his mind.

It should be, prompted another.

He's a means to an end, continued a third. A source of power, a way to gain what you desire.

… You were happy…, whispered a final voice, quiet and almost too weak to be heard above the others.

You were happy when you learned she was with child…

It's true. You know it's true.

There is no reason for it not to be. You are a sith lord. You do not care about others.

He will help you achieve all that you desire. He's a means to an end.

You were happy…

That fourth voice was gaining strength now the more he listened to it. Slowly it began to overpower the others until all that Vader could hear was it chiming over and over:

You were happy. You were happy when you learned you would be a father. You were grateful. What has happened to your happiness, to you gratitude now? What has happened to the father? Your child whom you thought was gone is here. Be happy. Be grateful. Be the father he needs.

I can't be someone who is dead! Snarled Vader in answer. And yet…

" Yes", Vader answered quietly.

" What?" asked his son, apparently not expecting any response.

" Yes, she's your mother", Vader told him. There, that hadn't been so very difficult. It had left him unharmed. It had just been a quick moment of weakness. Just a quick moment unguarded. Just a quick moment. Just a quick moment.

His son was staring at him. Vader did not like what he saw in the boy's expression.

Was that hope?

" Thank you father", Luke whispered, and his voice was raw with emotion.

Just a quick moment.

" Go pack for our journey, Luke", Vader told him, hurriedly clambering back into his chamber.

///

Leia touched her lips gently, her heart still pounding rapidly.

///

Han grinned as he flopped onto his bed and told himself to calm down. It hadn't really been that much. Just…

///

Luke smiled at his father's departing figure. This didn't mean that Vader had claimed any affection towards him. It was…

///

Vader pulled his curtains shut quickly, blocking out the bright rays of silver moonlight. It hadn't been anything big. Just a quick moment of weakness…

///

Of madness…

///

Of joy…

///

Of hope…

///

Of love.

_A.N.: Hello everyone! I hope that this chapter wasn't too filler-ish. I thought I would get in some emotional scenes before the action of the Dark Tower. It was tricky writing something to complete that tense scene at the end of chapter 10, I hope it turned out okay! Don't think that Padme will keep accepting excuses, there will be a confrontation, she would be stupid not to realize that something is up. Thanks so much to everyone who read, favorited, added to alerts and/or reviewed! _


	12. Something I said

Chapter 12: Something I said

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this!_

_A.N.: This chapter is dedicated to __**I love dance**__ for yoru wonderful reviews (thank you for sticking with VOTP for so long) and __**ILDV **__(I'm so glad you liked " The Portrait of Senator Amidala" enough to read another fic of mine). Thank you! _

Whirling through the skies, sometimes tossed by the wind like a fragile leaf and narrowly dodging deadly collisions the object hurried after its objective.

It was cylindrical in shape and a subtle black in color. The whine of repulsorlifts accompanied its erratic flight. Its blinking red and yellow lights magnified all the images that its optical sensors picked up and an internal scanner picked through them rapidly, searching, searching…

The little cylinder swept over graceful lakes and towering majestic trees. Their wild beauty went unheeded by it. They were not useful. They did not help it attain its goal therefore they were worth nothing.

" _I seek seven beings…" _

Gleaming silver cities spread out underneath the cylinder, filled with smiling and laughing children, scented with beautiful, fragrant flowers. Their charm was more lovely than the image of a painter captured on a silky canvas with a brush that brought scenes of life and joy into being. Beings treaded the soil of Naboo, carrying within their hearts silent tragedies and joys and hopes and fears and secrets.

The very air of Naboo was filled with secrets. Secrets hidden in the dark, emerald-green forests, secrets wrapped in parcels to be surreptitiously passed on to others, secrets buried underground, secrets unearthed and never to be fully understood.

There's nothing quite like a secret. Tantalizing and mysterious, light and beckoning, almost impossible to resist pursuing. Carrying the power to destroy cities and uproot everything the citizens of Naboo stood on.

" _Here are their faces…" _

The cylinder passed over them, scanning the faces of Naboo impassively, merely grazing its surface; not looking deeper, into the secrets of the planet, of what really made it what it was.

It was not its purpose to go chasing after secrets.

" _You are to seek them out…" _

The sun began to rise-? Set? – and with it the face of Naboo –rose? Slept?-, its daytime secrets hidden for a few hours. The subtler secrets of the night began to show.

But they were not what the cylinder was after. Its painted black shell painted bright crimson and warm pink and yellow, it raced onwards. Into the city of Theed, Naboo's capital. Through the emptying streets so rapidly that one had not time to say: " Look at that", before it was gone.

Through the dark, smelly alleyways past drunkards and killers and all the filth of the galaxy. Over graceful buildings and gardens, the light of dusk draining from the sky and painting them in darker tones.

" _When you find them, follow them…" _

Over the palace of Theed, halting when a bit of movement caught its eye, the cylinder continued, flying lower and pursuing the movement. But no, it was simply a pair of palace guards saying goodbye for the night then stepping back home wearily to their respective families.

The cylinder kept going, inexhaustible. Its blinking eyes trailed after a great red bird soaring through the quiet skies, a lost tourist, a solitary police droid. None of these where what it seeked.

And then there was another movement.

" _They are foolish, too foolish to notice you. Find them…" _

The cylinder drew closer, its sensors taking in the shapes of what it saw. Different beings, wrapped in dark cloaks stepping into a small ship greeted its eyes. But how to tell if they were the right ones?

" _I want to see every step they take". _

It wheeled closer, taking care to avoid being noticed. And then one face turned to glance anxiously back at the palace.

There.

The sensors locked in on it.

It was a boy, a young boy with pale hair and tanned skin and blue eyes. A boy with the face of a child who did not smile or laugh. A boy who seemed far too grown up for his age. A boy with many dark, dark secrets.

But the cylinder was not interested in secrets. It was only interested in the face of this boy, in the shape of his nose and his mouth and his eyes, for they were those of that which it seeked.

Secrets meant nothing to it.

The ramp of the ship began to shut, smoke billowing out around it and obscuring the backs of the cloaked passengers. The ship began to lift from its docking pad, a silver bird about to take to the skies.

It would not escape so easily.

The cylinder shot after it and, dodging the smoke and gusts of wind that blew from the docking ramp it slid underneath the shining vessel. It flipped over and, before it could plummet to the harsh, unforgiving surface of the ground and shatter extended sharp tendrils of metal that wriggled into the shell of the ship, securing the cylinder on its surface. Slowly it slid along the outside of the ship and peered carefully through the large window.

The tracking device began to send information to the Dark Tower…

_///_

The group entered the ship quietly, Padme leading them to the lounge and meeting room section while a pilot greeted them courteously and powered up the engine. The room was simple but nonetheless tasteful and attractive. The walls were an orangish pink shade with four navy blue couches arranged inside. A long silver table hovered steadily in the centre of the room.

Han, (who had been grasping Leia's hand the entire time), led her to one of the couches, grinning to himself as he sat down with her and wrapped his arm around her waist. The princess found pretending to be his girlfriend a little less difficult than usual at that moment.

Chewbacca took another seat and was followed by Admiral Piett who glanced at him nervously before sitting down.

Luke, Vader and Padme were left. Uncertainly the first two hesitated and the young queen of Naboo sat down.

" There's room for three", she told them smilingly. Each sat down on either side of her awkwardly.

There was a pause.

" How are you liking your training Ani?" Padme asked. Vader looked up quickly from where he had been burning a hole into the floor with his eyes.

" Oh, it's, uh, very… very good", he responded. His jedi training… how long ago that had been. Things had seemed so simple back then. He knew what he had to do. He had people to turn to when he was sad or frustrated. He had people he trusted. He had something to strive for that he knew, something he just knew was right. And now…

" What have you done to him?!" Padme demanded suddenly, furiously. The comment was addressed to Luke.

" What?" he asked, startled.

" Anakin, what have you done to him?" she snarled. " He's so different than just a year ago when I last saw him! Don't pretend you haven't noticed how he never smiles anymore! How he just… just stares off into space, not really noticing everything passing him by! You _have_ noticed, you just don't care!

What have you done to him?! He's just a child! He's not even 10 years old! What have you done?!"

Luke stared at her, then slowly turned to Vader.

" Why don't you ask him? I'm sure he can tell you better than us. Why don't you smile anymore f-Anakin?"

Vader stared at him then Padme. " I can't smile when you're hurt, Padme", he told her quietly.

She looked at him searchingly. " Is that really it?" she asked finally.

" Of course", was the quiet response.

" Hey, does anyone want some snacks?" Han cut in cheerfully, blissfully oblivious. He had just noticed the small food replicator in the corner of the room.

" Wow, they have corellian champagne!" he exclaimed. " It's been so long since I had that stuff! Last time it was… yeah, I think it was after that job of the fat toydarian's we did… his name was Hegtra, right Chewie? Yeah, that was it.

An' so we'd jus' delivered the shipping- really expensive silks an' rare food an' this real nice spice- uh, never mind that part, Leia! But anyway, the guy didn't know I'd tipped off the imperial company of transported goods examination, (for a hefty bonus, of course), so there we were with him, chattin' away all friendly an' everything when this guy who works for Hegtra comes rushin' in all white-faced- I'll never forget the look on his face! Like he'd just been run over or somethin', eh Chewie? An' he says " Boss, Boss, they reported you on that last delivery!"

An' then he gets the same funny expression on his face, except a bit worse, like he'd tried to swallow a whole itarian egg- hey, I tried that one time! But that's another story! So anyway he rounds on us, an' I'm just sippin' that champagne-"

He finally noticed the looks everyone was giving him.

" What, not hungry?" he asked, bewildered.

Leia gave him a look of deep disgust. " Sit down!" she exclaimed, pulling him back onto the couch next to her.

" Hey, I wanted to eat somethin'!" he protested.

Leia glared.

Han quickly ceased talking, however he then turned to Luke and mouthed: " Was it somethin' I said?"

_A.N.: Here is chapter 12! Now we're getting to the action of the story. The exciting part! I know this chapter took a bit longer than usual, however I wanted to do a good job on it. I hope that you are all enjoying, thank you very much for reading and for your reviews, please keep them coming! _


	13. The New Arrival

Chapter 13: The New Arrival

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this!_

Padme leaned against the back of the couch she shared with Anakin and Han Solo, closing her eyes. To the outside observer it appeared as though she was sleeping. However in reality she was doing something far more constructive.

She was thinking. There was something that didn't make sense here. A person couldn't be in two places at once. And yet…

_Padme left the library, more suspicious than ever. She was now convinced that the group of jedi were keeping something from her. Mr. Piett's mistake and Mr. Solo's hasty and unconvincing cover-up , Ani's recent strange behavior… something was wrong. She'd never heard Obi Wan mention a friend named Luke Starkiller, and although she supposed there were numerous jedi… _

_Padme sat in her chamber, fretting to herself. Finally, a solution presented itself to her. It was so simple that she was angry with herself for not having thought of it earlier. Why not simply call Obi Wan and ask how he and Anakin were doing? _

_She went to her small holocommunications center and typed in Obi Wan's number. After a minute or two the glowing blue image of the bearded jedi appeared before her. _

" _Padme!" he greeted her smilingly. " To what do I owe this pleasure?" _

_She felt some of her worry melt away at the sight of his cheerful face. Surely everything was allright. Surely there had been no reason to worry. _

" _I thought I would just catch up with you, see how you and Anakin are doing", she told him. " How is his training going? Is he enjoying living at the Temple?"_

_Obi Wan grinned even more, happy to be able to help a friend. " Why don't you ask him yourself Padme?" he offered. " He's right here". _

_And before the young queen's shocked gaze the jedi vanished from the terminal and the image of a cheerful boy appeared before her eyes. _

" _Hi Padme!" he exclaimed. " It's wonderful to see you again, I missed you!"_

It was impossible. How could Anakin be in two places at once? One of them must be false. And there was one way of testing it.

Padme opened her eyes once more and leaned forwards, reaching around her neck…

" _I missed you too, Ani!" she told him, fighting away her shock. She reached into the neck of her dress and pulled out a long chain with a simple pendant attached. _

Padme lifted the necklace out from under her blouse and dangled it before Anakin.

" _Can you tell me what this is, Ani?" she asked, forcing a smile onto her face. _

" Can you tell me what this is?" she inquired once more, attempting to appear calm.

_The boy's face glowed with joy. " It's the japor snippet I carved you!" he exclaimed. " You've been wearing it?!" _

This time the child's expression was far more complicated. She seemed to glimpse pain, joy, regret and a million other emotions on his face for an instant before he responded.

" How could I forget Padme?" Anakin asked her, a smile playing on his face also, yet this one was not so cheerful. " It's the japor snippet I carved you".

Padme's eyes widened and she sank back against the couch, stunned.

They were both real.

///

More of the trip passed, and rather awkwardly so. Conversation was difficult to keep going since everyone in the room was predisposed to dislike at least one of their companions. Finally, desperate to break the silence, Han spoke up.

" Anyone play sabacc?" he asked hopefully. Apart from Chewbacca he was the only one.

" Well I could teach you!" he offered. " It's simple really!"

Padme spoke up then, more out of courtesy than out of interest. " That sounds lovely Captain Solo", she replied. " Thank you".

" Great!" exclaimed the smuggler. " Anyone else? We need at least four players!"

" You'll play, won't you Ani?" Padme asked, turning to him. Hesitantly the sith lord nodded. Finally the entire group agreed to try the game. Han went over the rules with them and dealt a set of cards located on the ship.

The game did not go well. Han and Chewbacca were the sole players of any skill. Luke was too confused by the randomness of the game, Piett was so worried about not doing poorly yet not beating Vader that he was unable to do well. Leia might have done better had she focused on facing everyone and not just beating the sith lord. Padme, attempting to mediate the frequent arguments that broke out amongst the players did not fare much better.

Finally the game was abandoned and the group was left to sit around attempting to think of some new source of entertainment. Han, bored, finally dropped off to sleep, his enormously loud snores filling the awkward silence.

" Can't you be a bit quieter?" snapped Leia, elbowing him hard in the ribs. He snorted and his head jerked up. " Whazzat?" Han mumbled.

" Stop snoring!" the princess exclaimed. " You're so loud!"

" Sorry your Worshipfulness!" he snapped, irritated. Han closed his eyes once more and a minute of two later his snores began once more. Leia glared at him, however she could tell when something was a lost cause. She leaned back and attempted to sleep as well.

How, she found this impossible. Whenever she was nearly dozing she remembered that she was unarmed and in the company of an influential imperial admiral and Darth Vader himself. This, of course, rendered her side awake once more with absolutely nothing to do.

Leia opened her eyelids so slightly that they were mere slits, hardly enough for her to see from, and observed the others. Han, of course, was asleep. In fact, everyone seemed to be asleep with the exception of Queen Amidala. The woman was lying against the couch, not bothering to sit regally straight as normal. Her eyes wearily flitted around the room and Leia hurriedly closed her own when Amidala glanced in her direction. When the princess opened them again the queen had leaned back once more, eyes shut.

Leia had nearly fallen asleep herself when a sudden harsh sound racked the air. She sat up, startled, to see Queen Amidala bent double, couching violently.

" Padme! Are you alright?" demanded Vader turning to her worriedly. The woman nodded, however her coughing persisted.

Finally she managed to stop. " I'm sorry", Amidala gasped hoarsely. " I didn't mean to disturb you".

" You couldn't help it!" exclaimed Vader.

Amidala smiled at him. " Thank you Ani", she sighed.

Leia stared at them. For a moment Vader had seemed almost like a child, worried about the death of someone he cared for. And yet she could not forget his visit to her on the Death Star, nor his torturing Han and severing Luke's wrist. He had stood by as her planet, as her people, were destroyed. How could he be heartless enough to commit such crimes and yet be kind enough to care about Queen Amidala? It didn't make sense!

Leia sighed to herself. It was clear she would not be getting any sleep this trip.

///

Finally the lovely, verdant countryside of the Lake District came into view. Each member of the group was relieved. It had not been a pleasant journey.

Padme glanced surreptitiously out the window. There was no sign of anybody, yet she knew better. Her guest was here.

With a hiss the ramp lowered and the group left the ship. Vader was one of the last out. He had paused to walk by Padme and make sure that she was alright leaving on her own. Emerging from under the long shadows cast by the silver vessel the group was startled by a foreign voice suddenly speaking up.

" Greetings".

Before them stood a figure clad in a long brown hooded cloak. Padme's face broke into a grin.

" Everyone", she told them, smiling. " Allow me to introduce you to an old friend of mine, Obi Wan Kenobi". The man reached up and lowered his hood, revealing a youthful, handsome face.

" That crazy wizard?!" gasped Han. Leia hastily stepped on his foot, smiled at the guest and stepped forwards to introduce herself, however she was suddenly interrupted.

" You bastard", hissed a voice, strangely dark for such a high-pitched tone.

Vader stood at the top of the ramp glaring furiously at the new arrival. Suddenly he didn't look like such an innocent child anymore. A strange, glowing yellow color leaked into his eyes, giving them a feral, dangerous look. He snatched his lightsaber from his belt and launched himself at the jedi.

" I'm going to kill you Obi Wan!" he snarled viciously.

And the cute boy was now quite recognizable as whom he was inside the harmless exterior: Darth Vader.

_A.N.: The plot thickens! Thank you everyone for reading! My exams are coming up, I've actually had one already (it was awful) so that's why this chapter was a bit delayed. I found the rules for playing sabacc online. I hope you liked this chapter, thank you for reading and reviewing! _

_P.S.: Do any of you have fic recommendations? I can't find any new ones to read. Luke/Vader and Vader/Padme would be great. Thanks a lot! _


	14. Second Betrayal

Chapter 14: Second Betrayal

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this!_

Previously:_ Vader stood at the top of the ramp glaring furiously at the new arrival. Suddenly he didn't look like such an innocent child anymore. A strange, glowing yellow color leaked into his eyes, giving them a feral, dangerous look. He snatched his lightsaber from his belt and launched himself at the jedi._

" _I'm going to kill you Obi Wan!" he snarled viciously. _

_And the cute boy was now quite recognizable as who he was inside: Darth Vader. _

Obi Wan barely had time to raise his lightsaber and block the furious blow directed at him, although its force sent him reeling backwards.

" Anakin?" he gasped, barely recognizing the livid face before him that glared at him, full of hate.

" Not anymore, _my master_", the boy snarled sarcastically. He pounded blow after sizzling, deadly blow at Obi Wan who blocked automatically, his mind desperately attempting to comprehend what in the sith hells was happening.

" Anakin, what… what are you doing?!" he demanded, bewildered and fearful at the same time. What had happened to his student? How had he gotten here? He had seemed fine back on Coruscant! Now he was radiating hatred directed towards Obi Wan and he was… filled with the Dark Side.

" Something I wish I'd done a long, long time ago", was the furious reply. " I will finally have my revenge Obi Wan! You left me to burn! You didn't even have the mercy to kill me and end my suffering! You stole my son! I will kill you today Obi Wan! I will have you suffer for your crimes!"

The older man, more confused than ever, stared at him. " I stole your _what_?!" he demanded.

Vader did not reply; instead he attacked with renewed fury.

" Anakin, what are you talking about?!" the jedi exclaimed. " I-" he leaped in time to dodge a cut at his legs and parried a higher slice. " I don't understand you!"

The furious battle led the dueling pair closer and closer to the edge of the landing pad, with Obi Wan being driven backwards.

" Anakin, talk to me! Explain this!" gasped his former teacher.

" You betrayed me", was the enigmatic, furious response. " I trusted you and you betrayed me! For that I will kill you!"

Obi Wan began to comprehend that he was in real danger, and he became aware of how perilously close he was growing to a long, deadly drop from the landing pad. He began to drive back Vader's blows with jabs of his own. Slowly he began to gain ground and send the child back in the opposite direction. At this Vader's face grew even more furious. His attacks lost reasoning, clever strategy and planning where tossed to the winds for Vader was only calculating his blows to violently kill his opponent.

///

The onlookers stared at the ensuing scene in horror.

" What is Ani doing?!" demanded Padme, her hands flying to her mouth.

Luke exchanged glances with Han, Leia and Chewie. Something had to be done to stop this, but what could he do? The boy knew very well that he was no match for Vader in combat, let alone a fully trained jedi knight in his prime.

Obi Wan was driven back towards the deadly edge. Han groaned and drew his blaster, raised it and leveled it towards the pair.

" What are you doing?!" demanded Padme, attempting to snatch it from his hand.

" You'll hit Kenobi!" exclaimed Leia, shaking her head. " Don't risk it Han!"

The pilot shook his head, stepping forwards. " I can get the shot off!" he protested.

Piett stepped forwards, not intending to let him try. " That's my commander, and I am loyal to him", he snapped. " Put the blaster down Solo!" and he drew a small, shimmering vibroblade from his sleeve and held it to the smuggler's neck.

Leia stared desperately at the battle, alternately looking at Piett and Han. Piett could not stab the smuggler for fear of him being able to get off a shot before he was killed and Han could not shoot at Vader or Piett would kill him. They were at an impasse.

They were, but she wasn't.

Leia watched the battle closely. Following a rapid series of strikes Vader kicked Obi Wan hard in the chest, sending the man backwards and placing a few feet between them. That was her chance!

Leia turned to Padme, who had a blaster holstered at her side. The princess dove at the ruler of Naboo, snatched up the weapon, raised it and shot at Vader once, twice, thrice as he moved to attack Obi Wan once more.

The deadly bolts ripped through the air at the sith lord, who saw them coming from his peripheral vision. He began to block-

And then a robed figure leaped in front of him. Obi Wan raised his scintillating blade and sent the bolts flying away from Vader harmlessly. He turned back towards the child, hoping to have calmed him down-

And found a brilliant scarlet blade at his throat.

" How dare you have the gall to protect me?!" snarled the sith lord, as furious as if Obi Wan had shot the bolts himself and hit the mark rather than saved his life. " After all you have done, _how dare you_?!" He was shaking with rage.

Obi Wan stared at him, confused.

" Ani, stop it!" shrieked Padme desperately.

" Stay out of this Padme!" retorted the sith lord furiously, his eyes not leaving Obi Wan once even as he reached up and deflected Leia's next shots then violently wrenched the blaster out of her hand with his mind. " I've waited too long for this moment", the child whispered.

" Do you know how many times I have dreamed of killing you Obi Wan?" he demanded. " So many possibilities. I could asphyxiate you slowly. I could shove acid down your blasted throat. I could poison you so slowly you would live in mindless agony for a year. I could-" and here a dark humorless smile grew on his face. " I could cut off yours limbs and throw you into a pool of lava so could experience the horrific pain you forced me through".

Vader glared at Obi Wan and smacked his adversary violently across the jaw with the blaster he had relieved Leia of.

" I personally like the sound of that last one a great deal", he hissed. " However, it wouldn't be the same for you. Because when I was reborn in that fiery pit of hell it was not only physical but mental torture you put me through. The two beings I thought I could trust the most both betrayed me. And you know…" his eyes bore unforgivingly into those of his adversary.

" …I think the mental was worse". Vader smiled grimly.

" Yes, I would like for you to suffer that. But you don't love anyone. So it wouldn't hurt you anywhere near the way it tore me apart. No, the only one you love is yourself. What would be the best torture for you? There was only one answer".

Vader leaned in closer to Obi Wan. " Humiliation, then death. You, who have always prided yourself on your jedi morals, on your kindness with a kind of proud humility, let me show you how it feels to lose all of that, to loose everything you hold dear".

Obi Wan stared at him in dazed horror and confusion.

Vader made a sudden gesture towards the ground with his lightsaber.

" Beg me to make your death quick, and perhaps I'll consider the request", he snarled. " Beg, you worm! I want to see you as low as you found me when you left me on that burning slope! Beg me for the mercy you know you don't deserve!"

Obi Wan shook his head incredulously. " Anakin-"

" THAT IS NOT MY NAME!"roared the child. " MY NAME TO MY ENEMIES IS " DARTH VADER", TO MY UNDERLINGS " LORD VADER" AND TO YOU", he snarled viciously. " _DEATH!" _

Vader suddenly was silent. He stared at Obi Wan for a long moment. " Beg me, as I begged you", he whispered hoarsely, the pain behind the fury leaking into his voice.

Tears ran down Obi Wan's cheeks. " I don't understand", he uttered, entreating fate that it was only a cruel, haunting nightmare and he would wake up at any moment.

" BEG ME!" screamed the child, and his former mentor shook his head sadly. " I won't Anakin. I can't", he answered. " I only wish I could make whatever it is right".

" Damn you Obi Wan!" snarled Vader. " On your knees!"

" No", replied the jedi simply, tears continuing their slow paths down his face.

" Anakin, stop it!" demanded a new voice, and suddenly Padme was behind him. " What are you doing?!"

" Stay out of this I said!" Vader snarled at her.

" I don't believe what I'm hearing", she whispered. " Anakin… You've changed".

He turned to meet her gaze and found her eyes wet and pained, an entreating expression on her face. He was so angry, so very angry… He began to reach for the force…

" Let her go Anakin!" exclaimed Obi Wan, suddenly fearful for the beautiful queen. " Let her go!"

Vader returned his gaze to the jedi, furious…

" Let her go", whispered his former friend.

The sith lord's eyes widened. _Let her go…_

_I don't believe what I'm hearing. Obi Wan was right… You've changed! _

_Let her go!_

_You will not take her from me!_

Oh no, oh _no_…

The scarlet blade clattered noisily to the ground where it turned off with a hiss in the sudden silence that cloaked the scene like a smothering blanket.

Vader backed away from Padme and Obi Wan, his eyes gazing forwards, horrified, through time to another moment far too similar to this one.

Not again, not again…

Tears slid down the sith lord's face who now once again resembled nothing more than a child.

" _Lord Vader, can you hear me?"_

" _Yes… Where's Padme? Is she… all right? Is she… safe?" _

" _It would seem that in your anger you killed her". _

" _NOOO!" _

Vader did not even realize that he was screaming in agony along with his future self until he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Padme's face, Padme's beautiful, sweet face…

Marred with tears once more because of him.

Vader shrugged off the hand and threw himself away.

" Don't touch me Padme!" he exclaimed. " I'm not worth it! You're too good and I… I…" he choked back a sob, turned and sprinted away.

_A.N.: Thank you so much for the reviews! There's some dark stuff for you! Can't have Vader being too nice, now can we? You want to know something ironic? As I was typing the Obi Wan/Vader fight scene I was listening to the love song from the opera " Mme Butterfly"! That's where the comparison of Padme to a butterfly and the title of this chapter come from. I think you know that you're a good opera singer when no one can understand what you're saying. Then again, I don't speak Italian, so that might have had something to do with it! By the way, I recently saw the film Star Wars was inspired by, Akira Kurosawa's " The Hidden Fortress". It's really good, I recommend it! Thanks for reading! _


	15. A Question of Loyalty, of Gratitude

Chapter 15: A Question of Loyalty, A Question of Gratitude

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this!_

Admiral Piett immediately brought his vibroblade away from Han Solo's neck and hurried after the sith lord.

" Where are you going?!" demanded Leia.

" I'm going after him!" he called back.

" But what about the plan?!" she shouted after him, however this time the princess received no reply.

Lord Vader was fast. He sped through the air quicker than a blaster bolt, but Piett forced himself to keep up. The sith lord tore into a hangar attached to the landing pad at high speed and as the admiral entered the building himself he found Vader soaring out if it atop a dark blue speeder bike.

" Great", muttered Piett to himself. Pushing past a group of mechanics he leaped onto another speeder bike (a red one) and shot outside after his dimunitive commander. Vader took a sharp vertical turn over the lip of the landing pad. Groaning to himself Piett copied the move, working desperately to avoid falling off of the speeder bike. He just barely caught a glimpse of a blue streak flying into the thick undergrowth of the forest below.

Piett groaned once more. Was Lord Vader trying to kill himself?

Nonetheless, the imperial admiral continued after his superior. He was careful to fly nearer the tops of the trees to avoid the dangerous trunks which would prove fatal if he crashed into one. Still, the thin branches lacerated him painfully as he continued through the forest. Where was Lord Vader? Piett could not see him any more. Had he lost track of him? However, suddenly a blue shape shot up from the leafy treetops and cut in front of him. Piett was barely able to keep from being flung over his handlebars as he braked quickly.

" Why are you following me?!" demanded the sith lord irritably, tear tracks shining on his face.

" Milord, you're my commander-" Piett began, however Vader cut him off.

" I don't give a damn about that!" he snarled. " Leave!"

It was difficult to say who Piett's following comment surprised the most: Vader or himself.

" No!" he retorted unthinkingly.

Vader's face darkened, and a dangerous look shone in his eyes. " No?" he inquired softly.

" I-I meant no disrespect milord", the admiral continued quickly, desperate to rectify what could certainly prove to be a fatal comment. However, Vader's face was unforgiving, and Piett realized that he would have to try and explain-fast.

///

" Ani!" Padme shouted after the departing boy's shape. " Oh no, oh no", she whispered.

" What… how… was that really Anakin?!" demanded Obi Wan, bewildered. " What happened?"

" I don't understand it either", Padme responded. " He's acting so different… and now there's two of them…"

" What?" asked the jedi. Things just kept getting more and more confusing.

" You remember when I holoed you, and asked about Anakin?"

The jedi nodded.

" When I did so the Anakin whom you saw was with me", she informed him.

" What?!" he demanded once more. " But that's impossible!"

Padme turned to the others. " Well, perhaps they can explain it to me", she remarked, an edge of steel creeping into her voice. " I've had the feeling that you have been keeping something from me", she told them. " It's time to explain".

The group looked at each other. What could they say?

///

" Lord Vader, I've served under many commanders. And I… will admit that none of them terrified me the way you do. You kill ruthlessly and violently, but I am grateful to you". Piett hesitated. He knew just how openly he was speaking, but he couldn't stop now.

" Do you remember the mission at Forrlyan?"

///

A silent communication passed between the assembled group from the future. It was established by many looks and nods that Leia was to be the spokesperson.

" Well, this is going to sound pretty incredible", she began uncertainly. " But Gene- Obi Wan Kenobi, as a jedi you can tell when I'm lying, can you not?"

" I can", he responded. " Proceed".

" Everyone who arrived here, including Firmus Piett and um… Anakin… We come from 30 years in the future".

Padme raised an eloquent eyebrow. " That's the best you can come up with?" she demanded skeptically.

" It's true!" Leia protested. Obi Wan turned to Padme.

" Let her speak", he told the young queen. " I cannot sense any deceit in her words".

Leia continued. " We come from a world where the galaxy is now an empire under the control of a sith lord named Darth Sidious. Sidious was helped into power by his ruthless second in command… Darth Vader".

Padme stared at her, stupefied. " But that can't be right", she whispered. " Isn't… isn't Darth Vader what Ani just called himself?"

The princess looked at Luke.

" I'm afraid so", he responded. " Darth Vader, once Anakin Skywalker is also my… my father".

" A sith lord?" Obi Wan asked finally. " My pupil… my student becomes a sith?"

Luke nodded somberly. " I'm sorry Ben", he told the older jedi.

" I don't believe you!" Padme exclaimed. " I can't believe you! This is Anakin Skywalker we're talking about! He's a nine-year-old boy who is studying to become a jedi! He's impulsive, but he's kind! He can't be a sith! No, oh no!" And she burst into tears, crying heavily on Luke's shoulder. The young man awkwardly patted her on the shoulder, unsure of what to do.

" How could he?" Padme sobbed. " How could he do that?"

" I don't know how he could turn to the dark side", Luke told her quietly. " But I do know one thing. There is still good in him. Because even when he's only looking at you he is full of pain and full of love".

Obi Wan had turned away from them, making wiping motions that he tried to conceal. Finally he turned back, tears still shining on his face.

" We have to find him", Obi Wan declared, his voice cracking despite the jedi's attempts at concealing his emotion. " We have to find him, we have to do something, anything".

" How will we know where he's gone?" asked Han.

" Don't worry", Luke told him. " If I were him I know where I'd go".

" I'd go to get the antidote from Dooku myself".

///

Vader thought back. Forrlyan was a small planet where the imperials mined an extremely rare and valuable mineral known as hectride. It had once been attacked by Rebels who had seized control of the planet's precious resources and had successfully stopped an attempt to regain the planet by a certain Admiral Orcheus, who could tell the Rebels a great deal about the imperial military. Palpatine, worried by this show of defiance that was gaining much publicity and by the danger of Orcheus's capture, sent Vader to subdue the Rebels. The masked sith lord had taken two Star Destroyers along with his own ship the Exactor. One of these, the Assassin, was the ship which Piett served on at the time.

It had been on this journey that Vader and Piett had met.

_Vader strode through the chaotic orange forest, death surrounding him at every turn. His troops hurried after him as well as a few officers. The Rebels had chosen the enormous empty pit in which some mining had taken place for several years as their command center. In here Admiral Orcheus and his (surviving) men were to be found._

" _Lieutenant Orak, branch off to the left with your men", he ordered. " General Cerlo, take your troops to the right. I will lead an attack from the front. When you that the Rebels have come after us you will come back us up and we will break into their encampment"._

_The group split up. Vader's men crouched in the lush orange foliage surrounding the camp. The sith lord stood behind a tall tree, waiting… waiting…_

_He could hear his men now, whispering amongst themselves._

" _Why aren't we moving?"_

" _What is he waiting for?"_

" _I'd say he's trying to unnerve the Rebels, make them worry and turn that into panic. His appearance will add to that: the rebel scum know to fear Lord Vader. He wants them to start making mistakes"._

_The sith lord was surprised at this well-thought out answer, and without turning his head he stretched out with the force to find the speaker. _

_It was a fairly new man, a low officer named Firmus Piett._

" _Is that what he's doing? I'm getting rather unnerved as well", commented another individual._

_There was soft laughter._

" _Silence!" ordered another officer, and the forest was still once more._

_Vader immersed himself in the dark side. He could feel fear, shining through the force like a bright beacon. Now was the time._

_He turned to face his troops, and immediately all eyes were upon him._

" _Prepare yourselves", he ordered. " We attack now"._

_Everyone stood up, and Vader paused, then signaled and strode out into the clearing before his men. They spread out in the clearing facing the opening to the camp and had begun their invasion. _

_The next part was blurry for Vader. The dark side had taken a firm hold of him and he could recall slashing violently at Rebels, his blade slicing through them like butter; he could recall deflecting blaster bolts easily with his palm and sending them back at the beings who had fired them, but this was usual for the sith lord. This was not anything he was not used to. _

_What was unusual happened when once the imperials had successfully overpowered the Rebels. The (living) Rebels were grouped up and guarded by imperial stormtroopers. General Orcheus had been found alive, although experiencing the effects of vigorous interrogation. Vader had been organizing some means of carrying the wounded officer back to the imperial's ships when there was a sudden bang and flash of light and General Orcheus collapsed against the ground, dead. _

" _No!" someone shrieked, and Vader saw that it was Firmus Piett. Entering the low officer's mind he saw that the two had been related: Orcheus had been Piett's beloved uncle. The young man raised his blaster and shot repeatedly after the shooter, however he was blinded by rage and loss and missed completely. _

" _Calm down Lieutenant Piett!" Vader ordered, however the officer ignored him, stunning his superior. Instead Piett raced after his uncle's killer. Vader was intrigued by this defiance. He strode quickly after the two, through long, dark twisting hallways._

_They emerged finally on an open stretch of land which seemed to serve as a landing pad, for several ships rested upon it. They could see the fleeing Rebel dodging behind speeders and equipment as he approached the nearest one. Lieutenant Piett had raised his blaster and was firing violently, his jaw clenched._

_Vader took hold of the young officer's arm and forced it down._

" _Stop it Lieutenant", he ordered once more. Piett stared at him, his eyes wild._

" _You will not gain your revenge if you continue allowing your fury to cloud common sense. Think. Will you hit him if you shoot in the crazed manner you are utilizing?" the sith lord continued._

_Piett looked up at Vader. He was listening now. " No milord", he responded._

" _Precisely. Instead, look at the terrain. When is your one chance of making the shot?"_

_The young officer looked in front of him. The path to the ship the rebel was running for was almost entirely covered. However, directly before the entrance to the ship all cover was gone. _

_Piett pointed his blaster and watched what he could of the rebel. The man was nearly there, nearly there… And then the rebel was dashing out from behind a heavy set of boxes and making for the ship.  
Piett squeezed the trigger of his blaster. A powerful bolt ripped out from it and…_

" _I missed", the imperial whispered, lowering his weapon slowly. " I missed it. I failed". _

_Vader hesitated. On the one hand he always demanded perfection, however…_

_There was one moment in time he would like a second chance at._

" _Shoot again", Vader instructed Piett, " This time at that ship". It was not the ship the rebel was piloting, it was another which was next to it. Piett immediately understood what his commander meant. Raising his blaster once more he swiftly calculated the correct spot to shoot at. _

_Once again the shot roared through the air, hit the second ship, and bounced back and shot through the opening provided by the lowered landing ramp on the rebel's ship. _

_Vader could tell from the force that this time the young imperial had hit it's mark. He turned away, leaving Lieutenant Piett. _

_After that he remembered dealing with the rebel prisoners, terminating some, imprisoning others. And he remembered striding through the walls of the quickly emptying mining centre and seeing a young officer approach him, his eyes full of new found strength, pain and… gratitude? _

" _Lord Vader", Piett spoke, bowing respectfully. " Thank you". The sith lord, uncertain of what to do, simply bowed his head._

_However he could not get the image of that young officer, full of gratitude instead of fear thanking him._

_And so Lieutenant Firmus Piett was soon after transferred to Darth Vader's ship, where he climbed steadily in rank._

" You gave me something invaluable then", Piett told the sith lord. " You gave me a second chance. You gave me the knowledge that I am capable of achieving what I strive for. You gave me a chance to avenge my uncle. You gave me something I needed desperately, and for that I am forever grateful. And even if you kill me now I will still be grateful to you for that moment, for that chance, for that kindness. That's why I want to go with you milord. It's a question of loyalty, a question of gratitude.

Let me give you another chance. Let me help you gain what you need. Let me help you save Padme".

Vader stared at him for a long moment, his eyes hard. Then he sighed.

" Let's go", the sith lord uttered, and Piett smiled.

///

An hour later found the pair on their way through a small town that rested on the shore beside Lake Varykino. It was a small but picturesque community. When arriving at the village intending to purchase the supplies necessary for penetrating the Dark Tower they had over looked something rather important: the matter of money.

Piett had no need to carry any credits around with him on the Executor and Vader could get anything he wanted by barking out an imperious order.

That strategy might not work so well in his current body.

Therefore the two found themselves wandering the streets, attempting to think of some means of obtaining credits. Finally, Vader spoke up.

" You must make a diversion while I steal from a nearby restaurant", he declared.

" We're stealing?" Piett asked. This did not follow the imperial's rigid morals.

Vader fixed him with a furious stare that had the admiral cringing.

" You are the one who insisted on accompanying me", he pointed out icily. " Do you have any other suggestions?"

Piett did not, and nodded his acceptance of the plan reluctantly.

" Excellent", Vader replied. " Here is what we will do…"

///

The large marketplace square of the village was always teeming with people, bartering, selling, shouting, buying, haggling. Today was no exception. Above the square a tall clock tower soared up towards the sky. The clock that rested upon it's honey marble surface was an enormous contraption, constructed of stained glass forming the image of six brilliant flowers surrounding a gleaming luminescent star. In the middle of the star was where the two oversized twisted black metal hands were held in place. This symbol of beauty was a sight of which the villagers where proud of, and whenever their eyes fell upon it they would always smile with satisfaction at the sight. However, today this clock tower would today be the scene of some deceit and ugliness.

Admiral Firmus Piett had slipped away from the tour group he had joined upon entering the tower and was now standing in place behind the enormous glass masterpiece. He knew that the time he had taken to get in position behind the clock had given Lord Vader enough time to prepare his part of this revolting business.

It went against Piett's morals, this masquerade. However, it was necessary to save Lady Padme (as Piett had taken to calling her in his head).

The Admiral took a deep breath, smothered his conscience and stepped out onto the balcony before the clock.

" Everyone, listen to me!" he roared. " I am going to kill myself!"

And the square erupted into chaos.

///

Vader sat perched on the back of a stone dog statue, forcing himself to smile cheerily at the passerby as he pretended to pat the dog's head and used two pebbles as miniature spaceships that he zoomed through the air. It was a very convenient disguise, for no one gave him a second glance except to look and remark on what an adorable child he was.

This body certainly did have its uses.

The sith lord glanced offhandedly at the clock tower. Piett should be ready any moment now. Vader could tell that the admiral did not like the idea of stealing, however he was going along with the plan out of loyalty.

Loyalty. That was something the sith lord was rather unused to finding regarding him and he was still unsure of how to deal with it. Did he like being esteemed by someone? Or did he find it irritating and was he going to kill Piett?

It seemed that he was unsure about everything these days.

It was in the midst of these thoughts that Vader was roused back into reality by a sudden cry:

" Everyone, listen to me! I am going to kill myself!"

Ah, there was Piett.

Vader watched and waited. Sure enough, exactly as the sith lord had planned, people began milling out into the square and shouting inspirational things to Piett. They were leaving their stores completely unprotected.

The sith lord slipped away unobtrusively from the crowd and entered a small jewelry store. Unfortunately, a middle-aged woman was standing at the counter.

" Hello young man", she greeted him, smiling.

" There's a man out there who's going to commit suicide!" Vader exclaimed. The woman's eyes widened with horror and she raced outside.

The sith lord smirked to himself. This was all too easy.

He hurried behind the counter and pulled a small velvet bag utilized for putting jewelry in. Vader put his hand over the cash register, reached into the force and manipulated the machine so that a tray popped out, revealing numerous credit chips. He hurriedly stuffed a handful of them into the bag which he in turn stuffed down the baggy front of his shirt, then closed the tray of the machine-

" Freeze, thief!"

Vader swore under his breath and turned around slowly, putting on his most piteous and suffering face. The problem was that the sith lord did not have much experience with piteous or suffering expressions (or any expression, for that matter), therefore he came across as haughty instead.

A young man stood aiming a blaster at Vader.

" Caught red-handed", he remarked. " Come this way, boy. I'm going to take you to the police".

" The police?" Vader asked, now trying to seem terrified (and coming across as bored, or worried at best).

" Yes the police, thief", snapped the other. " Hurry up!"

Darth Vader did not like taking orders. This man was assuming that he had power over_ him_, the great_ Darth Vader_! Ever since his days as a slave Vader had detested being told what to do. He did not intend to now.

" I don't think so, sleemo", the dark lord snarled. He stretched out with the force and pulled his opponent's weapon into his hand. The young man stared at him, stunned and terrified.

Vader reached up a hand clenched in a well-known gesture on board the Executor…

///

Piett groaned inwardly. It felt awful, hearing those people calling out kind things to him when he did not deserve their consideration, when he was playing with their gentleness. People were beginning to enter the tower, it was only a matter of time before his escape route was cut off.

Lord Vader would have to finish soon.

Piett turned abruptly away from the balcony and back into the tower.

///

The two met up underneath a flowing spear-headed willow tree.

" You got the money?" Piett asked his superior. In response Vader pulled the velvet bag from his shirt.

" We must make our purchases fast", he told the admiral. " Soon we will be discovered".

" They won't pay much attention to a case of theft in a village where the police force comes from a larger neighboring city with more serious crimes", Piett pointed out.

" Not a case of theft, no", Vader agreed, " But they will with a case of theft and murder".

" Murd-" the admiral met the sith lord's impassive gaze, then looked away seeming… what?

Disappointed?

Ridiculous! How many had Vader killed before Piett's gaze until the practice had seemed almost commonplace?

Still, Vader could not help but picture that same expression of disappointment on Luke's face, on Padme's face…

" Come", he ordered, attempting to shake off these sudden, unwanted thoughts. " We must go".

" Yes milord", Piett agreed, shaken. Shaken but, Vader could tell, still loyal.

Why was he still loyal?

///

A few hours later, under the cover of night, the pair crept out towards the lake. Each carried a small pack containing a vibroblade, a flashlight, night vision goggles, an automatic grappling hook, a set of small tools and their weapons of choice (a blaster for Piett and a lightsaber for Vader). The two wore dark hooded cloaks.

Once they had arrived each pulled out a breathing device which they carefully set in place then nodded at each other and slipped into the water's icy embrace.

Vader saw a quick flash of the beautiful moonlit scenery before he was surrounded by dark liquid and frothy pale bubbles. He sank lower, lower into deeper darkness.

He was going to save Padme, no matter what.

A.N.: I'm sorry about the delay before this chapter! Darth Real Life was suddenly awful this week in supplying me with plenty of homework and other things that took up a lot of my time. However, I hope this chapter makes up for it! It is the longest I have ever written. Also, thank you so much for the reviews for the last chapter, I was thrilled with the feedback I received! Thank you thank you thank you! And now I have one last thing to say.

This chapter is dedicated to the person who played Darth Vader to my Piett and gave me what I needed to succeed. To them, with love and thanks. Sometimes all someone needs to change their life is a smile or a " hello". This person gave me much more than that. If you liked this chapter, please try and do something small like that for another.

The smallest things make the biggest difference.


	16. Revelation and Confrontation

Chapter 16: Revelation and Confrontation

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars, George Lucas does and I am grateful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This story is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this! _

Count Dooku paced his chambers impatiently, his shimmersilk cloak fanning out behind him. He wanted this waiting to end, he wanted to confront Skywalker once more! How long had Sidious been training the boy? For how long had he been playing Dooku for a fool?

For about the fiftieth time that day Dooku turned to an aide. He had questioned the man so often that he did not even need to ask his question anymore.

" I don't have anything from security, sir", the aide informed him. " They haven't detected anything below the tower".

Dooku nodded curtly in reply, then turned back to his pacing. Curse it! When would the boy come?

His master had betrayed him. His master had betrayed him.

He must stop thinking about this. He must remain calm.

All that there was to do was kill the boy and secure his position. If he allowed Sidious to keep this " secret" apprentice then Dooku was no doubt disposable.

He must terminate Anakin Skywalker.

///

Vader's clothes billowed out around him as he sunk deeper into the murky water. He was falling, falling into the unknown. Everything seemed different underwater, softened, subtler, slower. When he turned his head to look at Admiral Piett he felt like he was doing so in slow motion. The officer was already gazing back at Vader. His position in the water was lower because his body weighed more.

Vader raised an arm. His sleeve billowed out around it as the sith lord pointed in the direction they were to travel: out from the shore and the town and towards the tower. Piett nodded slowly and the pair set off.

///

Meanwhile, as the sith lord and the admiral entered the dark embrace of Lake Varykino, Padme, Luke, Han, Leia, Chewbacca and Obi Wan had entered the town to purchase their supplies and follow the other members of their group. When they arrived in the marketplace they discovered it to be full of people pressed tightly against each other with tense looking law enforcement officers attempting to keep the crush of people away from one of the shops.

" What's happened?" Luke asked one woman, shouting to be heart above the noisy throng. " Why are so many people here?"

She turned to face him, her face fearful however filled with the pleasure of spreading scandalous news.

" Didn't you hear?" she demanded. " A man has been killed in the jewelry shop! His throat seems to have been crushed… _from the inside_!"

She was very pleased with the horrified reaction she got from her audience and as she turned around to gossip with a friend of hers a knowing smile was spreading across her face.

" Well, I'm surprised at how long the monster managed to hold off", Leia remarked cynically. Han gave her a look that spoke full agreement.

" What are you… you don't mean… Ani did this?" Padme asked haltingly. Everyone turned to look at her and Obi Wan. They had almost forgotten that the pair hadn't experienced the horror of Darth Vader and knew him only as a young boy.

" Well… yeah", Han answered awkwardly. The group watched them tensely. The young queen stared towards the entrance of the shop, her eyes full of suffering. It was evident that she was holding back tears. Obi Wan, however, was having more success at concealing his emotion. His face was blank, however his jaw was tightly clenched and his eyes were full of suffering.

" How many?" Padme spoke up suddenly.

" How many what?" Luke asked, although he could guess at her question.

" How many has he k-killed?" she demanded.

The group exchanged uneasy glances. Nobody wished to be the one to answer.

" We don't know", Han told her finally. Padme stared straight at him, waiting for the part of the answer he wanted to hold back. " There's… too many for us t'know".

For a moment the sounds of the amassed crowd seemed muted as the group stood there in silence as if mourning the fate of the man who had been Anakin Skywalker. Then Obi Wan spoke up.

" Let's go", he uttered finally, and they went.

///

The coral reef was a thing of beauty in the light of day. It's rich pink, orange, blue and green hues were accented by the silvery sheen of the fish flitting past it and the waving red stalks of plants dotting it's surface. In the day the coral reef was a cheerful and spell-binding sight.

At night, however, it was different. There are some parts of life you aren't meant to see. You aren't meant to see your girlfriend with her rollers and facial mask on. You aren't meant to see the chaotic world of the backstage of a play. You aren't meant to see the dull, uninteresting lines of an incomplete painting. You aren't meant to see anything except the carefully schooled illusion of perfection given by these things. However, there still is the truth that no matter how good the illusion is, there is still more to these than what you see.

The girlfriend still has acne and flat straight hair she must fight to conceal. There is still confused costumes and frantic last moment line learning backstage. There is still sheet after sheet of discarded pencil sketch before the idea becomes a masterpiece.

In the same way, the coral reef was different at night.

At night there were no gentle rays of sunlight to bring out the glorious pigments of the underwater scene. There was no cheerful light to hide the dull colors of the night, to disperse the gloomy forbidding shadows to be found there. There was nothing to hide the vague sense of danger that lingered there, for overtop of the reef loomed the dark tower.

Beneath the reef floated two beings unfamiliar to the environment. Their dark cloaks floated around their shoulders, obscuring their bodies.

Piett glanced around himself warily.

" _I hope we're there soon", _he thought. _" This place… there's something about it that isn't right"._ Suddenly in the midst of his musings something caught hold of his cloak and dragged him backwards. Piett reflexively gasped, and the breathing device began to tumble from his mouth. The imperial admiral barely managed to bite down on it once more as he turned to see what had halted his advance.

To his relief it was only Lord Vader, not that the sight of an angry Lord Vader (even one that resembled a child) was particularly reassuring. The poor light threw an eerie, pallid glow onto the sith lord's face, casting strange shadows across it. Lord Vader tugged Piett back once more and this time the admiral hurriedly kicked along with the sith lord.

Lord Vader turned and pointed at something. At the sight of it Piett went cold. It was a security camera, unobtrusively nestled in the folds of the coral reef. Had he passed in front of it?

Lord Vader pushed up with his arms, dropping lower in the water, and Piett copied him. The two drifted underneath the sight of vision of the camera.

Had they been spotted?

///

Count Dooku was anxiously wearing away at the expensive rug at his feet by pacing when he spotted movement from the corner of his eye. When he turned he saw that it was his aide receiving a call on his comlink. Dooku's heart leaped. Was this it?

" A what…?" the aide was saying. " Are you sure? You're definitely… Okay… Okay… I'll notify him immediately then get back to you". He hung up and turned to the impatient sith.

" Count, the security guards have registered a disturbance underneath the tower", he informed Dooku. " They are certain that they caught at least a pair of individuals on a security cam. One drifted in front of it, however they were covered with a dark cloak, which masked them. Then another reached out to pull them back and their hand showed. What shall we do?"

" You shall send guards with me to the lake", Dooku ordered. " I will take care of them myself".

///

To Vader and Piett it seemed as though they had been traveling for days instead of minutes. When they finally had worked their way through the labyrinthine coral reef they found themselves facing stark black metal fences with coatings of slimy yellow brown algae. Piett turned to Vader questioningly. What did the sith lord plan to do now?

Vader turned to him and began to signal, when a sudden movement behind him made Piett start. Eyes wide, he motioned at the area behind the sith lord as suddenly a black, weighted net dropped down on the admiral. Vader whirled around to the sight of a dark shape dropping through the formerly calm waters, bubbles bursting into being around them. And a blood-red, glowing blade appeared…

_A.N.: Hello, everyone, thank you all for your feedback for the previous chapter! I'm sorry that this was such a slow update, I promise the next one will be sooner! I hope that you enjoyed this chapter. In the next one I get to write the scene I've been looking forwards to: the underwater fight scene! Thanks for reading and thank you all you new readers! Please leave a review to let me know what you thought! _


	17. Scarlet and Azure

Chapter 17: Scarlet and Azure

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars, George Lucas does and I am grateful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This story is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this! I also do not own the story " The Supernaturalist" by Eoin Colfer. I used one of the scenes from that book as inspiration for a scene in this chapter. _

Piett struggled with the cumbrous folds of the net that entangled him. It was too heavy, if he didn't get out of it Lord Vader would be up against who knew how many enemies! However, despite his efforts he was still sinking deeper, deeper through freezing black water until he finally landed with a dully painful impact against the lake's floor.

Piett attempted desperately to pull off the net, nonetheless the weighted ends wouldn't budge. However… what if he could reach his vibroblade? The weapon was contained in his boot, normally a good hiding place for it because Piett did not want his underlings to think him unconfident enough that he had to carry weapons and yet did not desire to go unarmed either.

If he could just reach it and cut himself free…

The admiral's right arm was tangled in the net, as were both his legs. His left hand was all he could use. Curling himself up into a tight ball Piett tried to reach through the bewildering folds of net and snatch the weapon. It was horribly difficult, though, and the fact that he couldn't see what he was doing didn't help the situation. Piett turned his head as much as he could, and froze when he caught sight of the scene taking place above him…

///

Darth Vader called on the power of the force to help him dodge Dooku's blade as Vader reached for his own lightsaber. The younger sith lord ignited the weapon, his scintillating scarlet blade hissing into existence. When Dooku struck again Vader's blade was there to catch it. The two were frozen there for a moment, burning blade pressed against burning blade in a violent embrace, then the pair pulled back their weapons.

This time Vader was the one to aim a blow at his opponent. He sent his lightsaber at Dooku's knees. However, instead of parrying the older sith maneuvered himself through the water so that his legs swung up and out of reach of Vader's weapon. Dooku then swung his own blade at Vader's head and the young sith lord was forced to drop down in the water to avoid it.

Because of the weight of the water in which the pair were engulfed the battle was strangely muted and slowed. The two combating sith lords were forced to adapt to this new environment, and the two began to make use of it as well.

Dooku's next move was to district Vader with a violent blow towards the younger sith's head then to send him flying backwards into the wall of the coral reef with a force push. The fragile structure cracked and fragmented against the force of the blow and crumbled into debris that engulfed Vader. The sith lord tumbled onto the bottom of the lake, nearly completely buried underneath the broken remnants of the reef…

///

Obi Wan started as an anguished cry came through to him in the force. It was a voice that was all too familiar, it was that of his apprentice!

Calling on the force to speed him the jedi struck out faster than ever towards the Dark Tower.

Anakin, Anakin…

He was leaving the other members of the group far behind him, however there was no danger to them. There was danger to Anakin, and Obi Wan was going to save him. He was flying through the water now as if possessed. He was passing over the coral reef- which had suddenly disappeared.

In its place was a dark cloud of smoke still masking the scene below. Obi Wan knew immediately that this was where his apprentice was. He unflinchingly dove through the smoky area and was momentarily blind-

///

Vader struggled to get up, however his limbs were trapped and he could barely raise his head. His mouth was filled with muck around his breathing device and his lightsaber was somewhere underneath the rubble Dooku had caused. He caught sight of movement above him, Dooku was diving at him, scarlet blade glimmering-

///

Piett's vibroblade was finally in his hand! The admiral pulled it weakly from his boot and began to saw desperately at the meshes of the net that held him captive. His arm was free and he ripped it from the net. Piett slashed at the tangle that imprisoned his legs. He was nearly free, he was nearly free!

Adrenaline screaming through his veins the admiral thrust his upper body through the hole he had created, recklessly slashing at any loose meshes that tugged at him, disregarding the cuts that oozed clouds of scarlet blood from his body when he cut too wildly. Piett rose up, up, yet one of his feet was caught and he could see that Lord Vader was imprisoned and Dooku was almost upon him-

///

Vader called on the force, sending the imprisoning debris flying away. However as he looked up he saw a blade of crimson that had almost connected with him-

///

Obi Wan snatched his lightsaber from his belt, sending the crystalline azure blade sizzling into existence as he plummeted downwards-

///

His master would not show him power then snatch it away to bestow upon another! Dooku had Skywalker, he had him and he would finish the boy-

///

-and Vader saw Dooku roll away from him suddenly, missing his target. The reason for this was explained when Obi Wan landed beside Vader, his lightsaber extended. The jedi had clearly just missed finishing Dooku off.

Obi Wan turned to Vader. His face was clearly concerned. Vader turned aside, turning from his former mentor and from the painful prickings at his tortured heart. The sith lord felt a sudden pressure on his shoulder and he whirled to confront Obi Wan who was nodding at Dooku.

" _He wants us to take him together", _Vader realized. _" That is not likely!" _And shaking off Obi Wan's hand the sith lord pushed off the lake floor and dove at Dooku. He sent a force push at Dooku, then another and another and another and another until Vader's nemesis was completely disoriented. Vader raised his lightsaber for the final blow-

Then a sudden vision of the past filled his eyes, a force vision that he sensed came from Dooku. It was Padme, Padme screaming in pain, because of him, all because of _him_.

Vader's mouth opened to scream and the breathing device he had held clenched between his jaws dropped out. His lungs were burning, his body was burning the way it did on Mustafar, and his heart was burning.

PADME!

///

When he woke up, it wasn't in a slow haze. For Vader, sleep meant that he was left vulnerable and the moment he woke up it was with the awful realization that he had been completely unprotected for hours. In this case his concern was more than justified.

When Vader opened his eyes he was greeted with the sight of dark grey stone floor which seeped cold into his body. His muscles tense enough to spring up and fight at any moment the sith lord slowly, carefully looked more closely at his surroundings. He had caught sight of grey stone walls that matched the uncomfortable floor when he heard the sound of footsteps. Quickly Vader pretended to still be asleep.

There was a whoosh (the sound of doors opening), what seemed like a struggle (for there was swearing and what sounded like two or three blows) then something fell on top of him, which hurt quite a bit.

There was another whoosh and more swearing from whoever had fallen on top of Vader.

The dark lord pushed the person irritably. It turned out to be Solo, who was rather damp, which did not improve Vader's mood.

" Get off of me Solo!" snarled the sith lord. The smuggler rolled off him and sat up slowly.

" Great, just great", Solo muttered. " Who's bright idea was swimmin' under the tower?"

" It was mine Captain Solo", replied a sweet, musical voice. At the sound of that voice Vader flinched at hoped that she somehow hadn't noticed him. However, his hopes were in vain.

" Ani?" Padme asked, and she sounded much closer this time. Vader hurriedly sat up and turned away. What was that in her voice? There was something different…

" Or would you prefer Darth Vader?"

Vader groaned inwardly and slowly turned around. He stared quietly at Padme, not saying anything. Her eyes were full of suffering.

" Why Anakin?" she demanded. " Why did you turn? How could you?!"

" Don't say that!" Vader snarled. " You don't understand anything! How could you possibly understand events you haven't seen?"

" I know enough Anakin!" Padme retorted. " A sith lord! You killed that man in the village we passed through! How could you? How could you Anakin?!"

Vader glared. She didn't understand! How could she understand? He had done it for her!

" He was in my way", he responded viciously. Padme flinched and tears began to leak down her face. Vader's heart constricted at the sight. Once upon a time he could have embraced her and made all her problems evaporate like dew underneath the glowing warmth of the sun. Once upon a time she had loved him. And now…

He kept failing her. He kept letting her down. He'd let Dooku poison her. He'd failed to stop Dooku and gain the antidote. He had hurt her on Mustafar and had nearly done the same thing here.

" There isn't time for this", another voice spoke up. It was Obi Wan. All eyes turned to him. " We need to get out of here. Padme… doesn't have much time".

Yes. Padme still needed the antidote.

" What can we use to get out of here?" Obi Wan asked. " I've checked the doors with the force, they're protected against being opened that way. We need them to be opened by someone outside, although I don't know how we'd get a guard to let us out".

It was then that the idea came, glorious and sudden to Vader's mind. A humiliating idea, however he knew he could do anything for Padme.

Vader stood up and walked closer to the door. He took a deep breath and thought of how he'd felt every day without Padme in his life. Tears easily began to stream down his face to the stupefaction of those around him.

" I'm scared!" the sith lord sobbed loudly. " I want my mommy!"

_A.N.: Thank you everyone for reading and for your reviews! At last I got to write the underwater fight scene! Please tell me what you thought! Thanks a lot! _


	18. Shattered

Chapter 18: Shattered

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this!_

Everyone in the cramped cell stared at Vader, stupefied. Was this really happening?

Outside the cell the two guards exchanged glances, one of pity and one of irritation.

" Great, we get to put up with this for who knows how long", groaned the younger man. His superior, an experienced soldier was less harsh.

" The poor innocent kid must be terrified", he exclaimed reprovingly. " My son is his age".

His companion rolled his eyes.

" You've gotten soft in your old age", he snapped. " That's a prisoner! Count Dooku will let him out sooner or later".

The pair stood in silence (or rather, with Vader's sobs echoing around them) for a moment, the younger man's face stony and the other's conflicted. Finally the older man turned to the cell door.

" Listen young man", he called. " Don't worry about this! Count Dooku will let you out soon enough and you'll get to see your mother before nightfall".

Vader looked up, tears streaking his face. " My mommy is dead", he whimpered, his lower lip quivering.

" Just leave him!" snapped the other guard.

" Have you no heart?!" demanded his comrade. " The poor child, losing his mother at that age!" And he turned to the keypad of the cell and began typing in the code for the door.

" You can't be serious!" exclaimed the younger man. " That cell is full of criminals! Anyway, what will you do, tell the brat a bedtime story?"

" Come on, I've got a blaster, and can you picture such a cute, harmless kid hurting me?" asked the other. " Look at that angelic face!" And the door slid open…

You had to feel sorry for the guards.

///

Count Dooku sat in an elegant (and of course inordinately expensive) chair in his lavish chambers. Idly he played with a small crystal vial containing a clear liquid. He hadn't thought that Skywalker and the others would have infiltrated the tower so quickly or else he would not have scheduled a meeting/dinner with the leaders of various planets who were interested in joining the Separatist cause. However it was now far too late for this error to be remedied. No matter how agonizing Dooku would have to wait until the dinner to deal with Skywalker.

' I've got plenty of time', the elderly sith lord told himself. ' There's no hurry. This worrying is beneath me'.

The door to Dooku's chambers opened and a servant entered, giving a low bow.

" The banquet is prepared Count", he informed Dooku respectfully. The sith lord nodded and rose. He should not feel uneasy. He would get this meeting over with and then he would deal with Skywalker. What could go wrong?

///

A few minutes later, the group was leaving the cell, several of them giving Vader rather odd looks. The sith lord wiped tears from his cheeks, a dignified expression upon his face.

" Why don't we take the guard's uniforms-" Luke began to suggest, however he was cut off by the sound of a loud alarm.

" Prisoners escaped from cell block 1274!" shouted a voice on the overhead system.

" No time" Padme responded. " Come on , we've got to get moving!"

And they hurried away down the long, winding corridors. All around them were the sounds of footsteps echoing after them and of an uncertain fate unless they evaded their captors.

" We need to hide somewhere or they'll find us!" panted Leia.

" Wasn't the hangar somewhere along here?" asked Piett. " I think… isn't that the door to it?" And he motioned to a pair of large metal doors.

" Only one way to find out!" replied Han. And he slammed a palm against the button to open the door…

Which revealed an enormous banquet hall, a large table full of people and Dooku at it's head.

" That could have turned out better", the smuggler remarked offhandedly.

///

There was a stunned silence in which the damp, dirty and disreputable group was taken in by the assembled aristocrats in rich silks, velvets and jewels. One or two ladies fainted (or at least pretended to).

" Right, let's address this in a calm, rational manner", suggested Obi Wan hopefully. When he had finished this sentence Vader had sprinted across half the table towards Dooku, his lightsaber ignited.

" Or not" sighed the jedi.

///

Dooku leaped up from his chair and snatched his crimson ligthsaber from his belt. Reaching out with the force he lifted all the plates, cups and platters before him and sent them hurtling at Skywalker. However, the young sith lord used the force to send him leaping high into the air above the missiles and drop towards Dooku like a blaster shot, his blade raised high above his head. The older sith dodged to the side in the nick of time as Vader's blow chopped his ornate chair into two smoking pieces.

" All power and no grace, no style Skywalker", taunted Dooku. " Raw power won't get you anywhere. You have to be able to control it".

All around the guests were panicking, which made getting closer to Vader and Dooku in order to help the former harder for the rest of the group. Finally Han pulled out his blaster and shot at the roof in hopes of quieting everyone and getting them to leave. However his shot succeeded only in hitting the enormous crystal chandelier, which hung from the roof, causing the ornament to burst into flame. Smoke from this began to cloud the room, making it harder to see anything of the ongoing battle other than flashes of red upon red lightsaber and rendering breathing difficult.

Obi Wan snatched Luke's arm.

" Come on, we've got to get to him!" the jedi shouted, and they began to shove people out of their way, using mild force pushes when necessary.

Luke stumbled after the jedi, however it was tough going. The smoke clogged up his throat and painfully clouded his eyes. All around him was pain, suffering, and a part of his brain told him he had to keep going, had to keep pushing forwards but the people were like impenetrable barriers of steel before him and Ben's hand on his was like a twisted claw digging into his flesh- no, he had to keep going, he had to-

///

Pain and terror attacked Vader's mind like barbed arrows, ripping at him suddenly. The sith lord gasped and staggered back from Dooku. This pain, it came from…

" LUKE!" shouted Vader. He cast around desperately. Where was his son? What was happening to Luke?

Then the sith lord barely managed to detect a blow that Dooku leveled at him violently.

" Pay attention Skywalker", the count told him mockingly. " It would seem you haven't rid yourself of all caring. You're not a sith lord boy. You're a child posturing with a lightsaber".

Vader snarled and regained his stance, however his concentration was broken. Did he leave Dooku and possibly abandon all hopes of regaining the antidote and saving Padme, or did he leave his son, who might be dying, to fend for himself?

The dark lord hesitated…

///

Padme coughed violently. The smoke felt like it was scratching at her insides, destroying her from the inside out. She spat out a sticky mouthful of blood and suddenly found herself slumped over the table, sweat leaking from her every pore and pain screaming from her whole body. She didn't have much time…

///

Han, Piett and Chewie were trying to push their way through the crowd on the opposite side of the table from the others when suddenly Leia appeared beside them.

" You'll never get through that way", she snapped. " Come on, I've got an idea!" She led them through the crowd to a long sweeping staircase that led to a balcony which overlooked the dining hall.

" We'll be able to take Dooku by surprise and shoot him from the staircase!" Leia explained. Piett nodded and began to hurry up it, however Han did not follow the imperial before making one quick, roguish comment.

" You're not just a pretty face your Worshipfulness!" the smuggler remarked, flashing Leia a grin that made her weak at the knees.

They ran up the stairs.

///

Padme pushed herself up from the table. She had to keep moving! Pulling herself along weakly with the help of the table she made her way across the room and nearly walked into Obi Wan.

" Padme!" the man exclaimed. " Luke, he's fainted…"

" I'll do my best to help him", she responded. " You go help Anakin".

The jedi nodded and turned from her, making his way towards the two sith lords. Obi Wan pulled out his lightsaber and ignited the scintillating blue blade.

" Took your time, didn't you?" snarled Vader. " What's happened to Luke?"

Obi Wan began to fight alongside his former student. The two were allied by desperation and began to work together, employing methods with which they had fought together before.

" What's happened to Luke?" demanded Vader. " Is he alright?"

" He's passed out, Padme is watching him", the jedi replied. " I think it's the residual aura of this tower. You know it's background: thousands of prisoners were tortured here. This room seems especially pain-filled. For a young jedi who does not seem to have a lot of experience he cannot cope with it".

" Will he be okay?" Vader asked, deflecting one of Dooku's blows.

Obi Wan turned to look at him.

" Why so worried about him Anakin?" he inquired, a strange look on his face. Was that hope?

Vader did not answer.

///

Luke was surrounded by darkness. It was all around him, pressing against him, trying to make him disappear inside it's inky embrace. It was overpowering him, and he had nearly ceased his struggles when he heard someone calling him from very far away.

" _Luke… Luke, come back", _echoed the voice in the numb silence of his mind. _" Son, don't leave. You can fight this". _

Luke could hardly hear the voice now. He was folding up inside rather than face the overwhelming darkness all around him.

" _Luke", _called the voice once more, and this time it was different. It was no longer deep and commanding, but hoarse and frail. _" Luke, I need you". _

Luke opened his eyes with a start.

///

The whirring blades of the lightsabers were rapidly becoming all that was visible in the room apart from the smoke. Vader was losing the battle now, and with him Obi Wan, for the sith lord could not concentrate on fighting when his son's pain echoed in the force. The dark lord could feel Luke's terror as the boy began to shut himself off from the world.

" _Luke, Luke, come back!"_ he called to his son as he desperately attempted to overpower Dooku. It was no use, the child was slipping away and it was his fault, he had hurt Luke over and over mercilessly.

" _Luke…"_ he added finally, long denied emotions suddenly speaking, _" Luke, I need you"_. He felt a faint surprise at his son's end, then the boy's presence beginning to grow once more. Vader turned back to the fight, the terror at the thought of losing his son turning to fury with Dooku, who had oppressed him so thoroughly. Vader's blows increased in strength, his body hummed with power. The older sith lord was driven back, real fear on his face.

Suddenly Luke was at the side of the jedi and the younger sith lord, his own blade clashing with that of their nemesis. Padme appeared beside then, coughing yet holding a vibroblade steadily and standing in the way should Dooku attempt to run past his enemies.

Luke had learned from his last battle with Dooku. He learned to trust his comrades to protect him and to block Dooku's blows at them.

Count Dooku was driven up the stairway by his four opponents. Realizing that he was beaten the sith lord turned to flee, however he found himself face to face with Han, Leia, Piett and Chewbacca as well as three blasters and a crossbow. Slowly Dooku backed away from his adversaries until he was against the stairwell.

" If you try to jump we'll shoot you easily", Leia told him. " Give us the antidote".

Dooku hesitated, glancing from one merciless face to another. Finally he nodded, reached into his shimmersilk robes and pulled out a small vial full of clear liquid. He began to hold it out as though surrendering it to the group, then his arm snapped out suddenly as he hurled the vial away, projecting the force into his throw.

The vial shattered against the wall with all of the group's hope for Padme's life.

_A.N.: Hello everyone! Thank you for your reception of the last chapter, I'm glad that you enjoyed it! Sorry this update took so long, Darth Real Life was killer. However, to make up for it I promise I'll have another chapter out early next week at the latest. _

_There will probably be one or two other chapters, then this fic will be done and I'll be starting the sequel. Before that I am considering writing a prologue because I don't think that my first chapter is very strong, but that won't take very long. I do have a fair idea of what will happen in the sequel, however not everything is decided so if you have any suggestions for the sequel please tell me! Thank you for reading, please leave one of your wonderful reviews! _


	19. Puzzle Pieces

Chapter 19: Puzzle Pieces

_This chapter is dedicated to _I love dance _for giving me my hundredth review! Thank you so much! _

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas and I am thankful to him for creating such a wonderful story. This fanfiction is written purely for fun, I am not getting paid for writing this!_

_Previously: Count Dooku was driven up the stairway by his four opponents. Realizing that he was beaten the sith lord turned to flee, however he found himself face to face with Han, Leia, Piett and Chewbacca as well as three blasters and a crossbow. Slowly Dooku backed away from his adversaries until he was against the stairwell._

" _If you try to jump we'll shoot you easily", Leia told him. " Give us the antidote"._

_Dooku hesitated, glancing from one merciless face to another. Finally he nodded, reached into his shimmersilk robes and pulled out a small vial full of clear liquid. He began to hold it out as though surrendering it to the group, then his arm snapped out suddenly as he hurled the vial away, projecting the force into his throw._

_The vial shattered against the wall with all of the group's hope for Padme's life._

" NO!" shouted Vader. This couldn't be happening. In that moment he felt as if Padme had died another time, and that it was once more he who had killed her. Vader saw red as he turned to Dooku furiously.

" You bastard!" the dark lord snarled, grief and anguish ripping at his broken heart. But the older sith had taken advantage of the pain of his opponents to leap from the balcony and make his escape.

Vader was about to follow him, however the sharp coughing that came from behind him halted the dark lord. He turned and saw Padme sitting in a crumpled pile on the floor, her hand in front of her face and blood dripping from it and from the corners of her mouth.

" Padme, I'm so sorry", he whispered.

///

Piett hung back from the group, horrified. He had hoped to help save Lady Padme, to pay Lord Vader back for helping him years earlier. And now look at what had happened. He'd failed. He always failed in the end, when it most mattered.

' No you haven't', persisted a small voice in Piett's head. ' You shot the bastard who killed your uncle'.

' _Only thanks to Lord Vader, who I've now let down!' _snarled the Admiral. _' Be quiet!' _

' This doesn't make sense', continued the voice, ignoring him. 'Why did Dooku poison Queen Amidala in the first place?'

' _It doesn't matter!' _snapped Piett. _' It's over, he's succeeded!" _

' No he hasn't', the Admiral told himself. ' Think Piett! Why did Dooku poison her! Why?!'

And like magic the scrambled puzzle pieces came together with a beautiful clarity in Piett's mind.

" Stand up", he told his companions. " That was not the antidote that shattered. It could not have been the antidote".

///

All eyes turned to Piett, hope beginning to bloom in those eyes. The admiral hesitated, questioning himself. Was he really right? If he was giving Lord Vader false hope?

' No, you know you're right', Piett told himself firmly. ' Nothing else makes sense!'

" Why would Dooku destroy the antidote?" he demanded of the group. " It's his bargaining chip for making Lord Vader do whatever he wants. He hopes to use it to gain you as an apprentice Lord Vader. He knows that if he killed Lady Padme you would never agree to anything he suggests. Dooku destroyed a false antidote because he saw that he was about to be overpowered. He has left with the real one and would probably like to get you on your own to negotiate with you Lord Vader".

The despair drained from Vader's face and was replaced with cold fury, determination and something else, something that looked strange in the sith lord's face, as though it hadn't been there for a very, very long time.

" No", gasped Padme. She coughed once more then looked up at Vader slowly. " Don't go Ani. Not on your own at least. It's too dangerous!"

" What are you worried about Padme?" the dark lord asked quietly. " Are you worried I'll turn to the dark side? Because there's no need to worry about that, it's already taken place".

Padme looked pained, and guilt stabbed at Vader's heart. " Oh Ani…" she sighed. " Why did you do it? Why did you turn?"

Vader hesitated. I owe her this, he told himself. After all that I've done her her, this is the least I can give.

" I turned because I had a vision of you dying and thought it would save you", he confessed, not sure whether his words freed him or pained him more.

" Did that work Ani?" Padme asked. Vader did not answer. " If the dark side did not, then perhaps you ought to try it's opposite", she suggested.

Vader looked up at her, startled. " It's too late for me Padme!" he exclaimed. " That's ridiculous!"

" Then why do you want to save me?" she asked quietly. " You turned to the dark side, not for power, but for love. That doesn't sound like a dark action to me. I think there's hope for you if you look for it".

And Vader turned then and ran away, not daring to look at her and not daring to look too deeply inside himself.

" _Dooku dies", _he told himself. _" I'll figure out the rest later". _

///

Count Dooku of Serenno hurried to his hangar, burning with fury and shame. He had been defeated by that insolent child! He, the great, powerful sith lord by a child who could barely be ten years old!

Seething, Dooku ordered his pilot to lift off and paced rapidly back and forth. Finally, however, he managed to calm down. True, the boy had power. But he hadn't beaten Dooku because of power, but because he had the advantage of numbers, because he had used those numbers cleverly.

Power was one thing, and cunning and treachery another. Who better to teach Skywalker a lesson in cunning than he, the great Count Dooku? For he was free from weakness, and that boy had a fatal flaw that was all too easy to exploit.

Brooding on these ideas Dooku slowly felt himself slipping into the grasp of sleep, and he allowed it, reasoning that he would need his strength to fight Skywalker.

///

When he woke up it was because of a loud thud that echoed throughout the ship. Dooku could feel the dark side warning him, danger was very, very near. The sith lord sprang up, cursing himself for having slept so deeply. Skywalker was here, he could sense it. The count snatched his lightsaber from his sleeve and hurried to the door, then hesitated with his palm on the door controls. Assuming a defensive position, and igniting the lightsaber he pressed the door release.

All was quiet. All was still. Too still…

Dooku switched off his lightsaber. It's humming was loud and he hoped there might still be a chance of sneaking up on Skywalker and catching the boy unawares.

The silence pressed down upon the ship like a smothering blanket. Dooku could hear his heart hammering frantically against his chest, and he tried very hard to convince himself that this fight was already won, that he was not afraid. His soft footsteps seemed to echo like thunder, and his breathing loud enough to awaken the dead.

He entered the steering compartment of the ship and was greeted by the sight of his pilot and copilot's crumpled bodies lying on the ground, their clothes drenched with blood. Dooku shuddered and forced himself not to panic. He turned from the compartment and searched the small kitchen, the pilot's and the guard's chambers and his own set of rooms once more. Finally he entered the small hangar.

" I know you're here Skywalker", called the older sith lord, trying to ignore the tremor in his voice. " It's no use trying to hide. Come out and fight". Adrenaline pumped through his veins crazily, rendering everything super sharp to his eyes. His limbs burned with the need to move, to fight, to do anything other than stand there and be afraid.

In Dooku's mind's eye he suddenly saw a silver door opening. Saw a chair turn, saw a dark shape on it. Then there was the clash of lightsabers in his ears and suddenly he was looking at himself, on his knees, hands severed at the wrists with a pair of lightsabers crossed at his throat: one scarlet as blood and the other azure as the sky. And he could feel that this was an honest image of what would or had come.

" Impossible", breathed the sith lord, shaking. " No, it can't be, it can't…"

" It can and it is Dooku" spat a young voice suddenly, and the floor disappeared under the older sith's feet. The ship was designed so that if there was an emergency the floor of the small hangar would open up so that escape pods could drop away from the ship. This function had obviously been triggered by Skywalker.

Dooku barely managed to snatch the edge of the opening and hang there. Beneath him the engines roared, and the wind from them tore at his clothes. If he dropped he would be torn apart by those propellers…

Dooku prepared to leap upwards, however a sudden pain erupted in his right hand and he looked up to see young Skywalker who had stepped on the hand.

" I don't have time to waste trading blows with you Dooku", snarled the boy. " Tell me where the antidote is!"

" How will doing so benefit me Skywalker?" demanded the older sith, shouting to make himself heard over the roar of the engines. Was this child really clever enough to realize that only a false antidote had been destroyed?

Vader hesitated. Dooku had harmed Padme, attacked Luke and dismembered him in his future/past life. However, the words Padme had spoken to him before he left came to his mind: _" Did that work Ani? If the dark side did not, then perhaps you ought to try it's opposite". _

" _You turned to the dark side, not for power, but for love. That doesn't sound like a dark action to me. I think there's hope for you if you look for it"._

" I will spare your miserable life… for today", Vader told Dooku. " You have already seen that I will take it later.

" Lies, lies…" the count muttered, desperate to have any hope to cling to.

Vader stomped on his hand again, and this time Dooku was forced to let go, one hand keeping him from falling to a violent death.

" Give it to me!" shouted the boy. " Now!"

" It's in the hilt of my lightsaber!"

Vader cast around for the weapon and saw it lying on the ground, dangerously close to being sucked in through the hole. Reaching out with the force the sith lord called the lightsaber to his hand.

" Unscrew the bottom, and hurry!" exclaimed Dooku.

Vader did as instructed, and a small purple vial containing black liquid dropped into his palm.

" This is not another fake?" he asked.

" It's real, I swear it's the real one!" shouted the count desperately. " Now fulfill your part of the bargain!"

Vader could feel the truth behind the count's words, and he toyed with the idea of killing Dooku early, however the sith lord reluctantly stretched out with the force and lifted his nemesis back into the hangar.

When Dooku had finally gotten to his feet, shaken from his ordeal, he was just in time to see a stolen speeder bike swoop through the opening in the hangar floor and disappear in the direction of the Dark Tower.

///

When Vader went after Dooku the rest of the group had left the banquet hall, supporting Padme between them, and had managed to get her to a med centre there. They had taken the doctors hostage to keep them from alerting the guards as to their location. Padme was by this time unconscious and her breathing was shallow and erratic. An hour of anxious waiting passed, then suddenly the doors burst open and Vader rushed in.

" Did you get it?" demanded Luke immediately. Vader nodded and pulled the vial he had taken from Dooku out of his belt. Uncorking the bottle the sith lord propped up Padme's head, opened her lips and gently tipped the contents of the vial into her mouth.

There was a tense moment, then, barely perceptibly, Padme swallowed the draught. Leia reached over and checked her pulse.

" Her heartbeat is getting stronger", she announced, looking relieved.

" I think she'll be alright".

_A.N.: Hello everyone, it is, uh, a long time after I said I would update! I'm really sorry… I got sick and stuff, but this took too long, I'm sorry! Please review anyway! Thank you so much for giving me enough reviews to pass one hundred! The last chapter will come out soon, then I will start the sequel. I think it will be called " As Sweet as Honey, As Deadly as Steel". Whoever can tell me where that quote came from (it's in one of my chapters) and whom it describes gets a dedication! Thank you! _


	20. Epilogue: Return

Epilogue: Return

Padme made a full recovery. She sent for her guards from the Dark tower and Dooku's forces were successfully overwhelmed. The queen had many affairs of state to catch up on, however, when she had completed a great deal of these she finally left her chambers to visit Vader.

When she was admitted to his chamber she found the sith lord in the midst of laying out his life support suit upon the bed.

" Ani?" she asked. " Why are you bringing that thing out?"

Vader did not look at her. " I believe that my task here in the past is completed, and that I shall soon be returning to my world".

" Ani", Padme uttered quietly. " Thank you. You saved my life".

Vader whirled around suddenly, his face wild. " ' Thank you' Padme? Thank you?! Do you know what I am? No, no you don't, not yet. But you will, you will! And then will you be thankful?! I do not think so. I think you will curse me with every fiber of your being".

" I don't understand what you're talking about Anakin", Padme told him, worried and a bit frightened. Vader's eyes dropped to the ground, and his face was full of pain.

" Padme… In the future, I hurt you. I attack you, I nearly kill you". Nearly, because if Luke was alive he could not have killed his beloved wife, however his crime was still hideous and terrible.

The queen of Naboo stared at him, aghast. " Anakin…"

" That is not my name!" Vader roared. " Can't you see now Padme, that I can never again be your Anakin? I'm tainted, my soul is stained black by the dark side! I can't change who I am: a monster, a killer, the lowest being alive!"

Padme embraced him.

Vader stared up at her, amazed. Tears trickled down his cheeks as he sobbed quietly. The sith lord tried to break away from his queen, however she held him fast.

" How can you bear to touch me Padme?" he whispered, full of self-loathing.

" Because I saw how desperate you were to save me here", she told him. " You hurt me in the future, but in this strange vision of the past you gave everything you had to saving me. I have seen for myself how much you have suffered, and how deeply you regret your wrongs. I know that you love me, and I know that I love you. Love is the most ridiculous, absurd thing ever created. It means that no matter what you did or will do, I love you. And I will continue to love you.

" Anakin Skywalker, I forgive you".

Padme pulled back and smiled at him as sweetly as she ever had and would.

" Go fly amongst the stars my jedi. Go find yourself, and try to find a way to forgive yourself. Nothing can change my love for you. It reaches across the time, across the stars".

Vader sighed, then pulled Padme down lower. He pressed a kiss against her forehead, and at the same time put a lock on her memories of this visit.

" I love you Padme", he told her, sealing the remainders of them. " You're too good and I… I can only be sorry". The trigger for the memories would come thirteen years later in a floating med centre.

Padme's memories would rush in only as her life rushed out of her body.

The sith lord laid the unconscious queen gently on the bed, pulled on his suit and strode from the room after one final, lingering glance at his one true love.

As he ran from the chamber Vader suddenly found that his suit dragged less, that it suddenly did not seem quite so heavy, that the helmet did not seem to obscure his eyesight nearly as much as before.

He was filled with blinding pain, terror, confusion, yet in the midst of all this there remained the one emotion that Darth Vader had never been able to rid himself of: love.

" _I love Padme", _the sith lord admitted to himself. _" I always will. There is still good in me"_.

And then his fear and confusion overwhelmed him, as they did the others who had traveled from the future: Piett, Han, Luke, Leia and Chewbacca. It was a feeling that was all too familiar. It felt like being doused in freezing water, sitting where one thought a chair was and collapsing on the ground, being caught doing something one definitely should not be doing, hearing a scream tear up the night, thinking there was one more step in the staircase and dropping for a moment, it was everything sudden and startling and unpleasant and yet it was more than that.

It was being doused in freezing water wearing thin clothing on Hoth, sitting where one thought a chair was and collapsing on the ground then falling unconscious and waking up bound and gagged in the darkness, being caught doing something one definitely should not be doing and being caught by the person one loves and esteems the most, hearing a scream tear up the night and realizing that the person who screamed was in one's room and so was whatever that made them scream, thinking there was one more step in the staircase and dropping forever.

It wasn't just sudden and startling and unpleasant; it was also terrifying.

The group collapsed, darkness overwhelming them.

///

Piett awoke much faster this time. Suddenly his eyes fluttered open as he felt the unpleasant sensation of having his feet drop out from under him, then his knees connected with a hard surface that sent bolts of pain thudding through him.

" Admiral Piett! Sir, are you alright?" exclaimed a lower officer, hurrying forwards. Piett stared at the man, then at the dull grey walls that surrounded him. Turning slowly he found himself facing a long window from which he could see the battle taking place below.

The admiral took a deep breath to steady himself, and touched the window tentatively.

" I'm back", he gasped.

///

Leia suddenly found herself seated once more at a gun turret in the midst of a battle against imperials.

" Han?" she finally called shakily over her headset after a moment of shaky confusion. " Chewie?"

A roar came over the headsets, then Han's familiar, reassuring voice.

" We're back your Worshipfulness. And in the middle of a space battle to boot!"

Leia smiled grimly and returned to her gun.

" Yeah, a bit of warning would have been nice".

///

Vader's eyes snapped open, and the first thing he noticed was that everything was red, all red. He reached up a hand to touch his head and his fingers connected with metal. When he looked at the hand he saw that it was encased in dark leather.

" I'm back", the sith lord spoke aloud, and his voice was a low, thunderous rumble. Then he looked out the viewscreen of his ship and saw another vessel, an x-wing rebel fighter hovering before him.

" _Luke?" _Vader called through the force.

" _Father", _the boy answered, and the sith lord attempted to ignore how hearing that word made him feel.

" _What happens now Father?" _Luke asked.

Vader switched on his radio and made contact with his fleet.

" Pull back!" he ordered. " This fight will continue at a later time".

" Yes milord", answered a rather familiar voice, and Vader recognized it as belonging to Piett. Piett… what was he to do about him? That man knew so many of his secrets…

" _I have given the order to retreat", _Vader told his son. _" We will continue this discussion another day". _

" _Goodbye for now Father", _Luke answered quietly.

Vader slowly turned and steered away. And it occurred to him that he felt rather different…

///

Half an hour later Luke, Han, Leia and Chewbacca found themselves before the high council of the rebel alliance.

" You have no idea why they retreated Commander Skywalker?" Mon Mothma asked. " They had the advantage, and could have given us a crushing blow".

" I'm not sure why ma'am", Luke replied. He wasn't sure, but he had a fair idea…

" I see", Mon Mothma sighed thoughtfully. She stared into the young jedi's eyes, and he had a feeling she knew he was keeping something back.

" You are all dismissed then", she informed them. " Thank you all, you fought very bravely".

The rebels left and walked away together quietly.

" What happens now?" Leia asked finally, outside the rebel fortress. All of them turned to Luke, waiting expectantly. When had he become the leader? It was a hard burden, but Luke thought it was worth it.

///

Vader stepped back aboard the Executor, his mechanical breathing echoing loudly throughout the ship. His men stared after him, curiosity mingled with fear, however none of them dared question as to why he had pulled back the fleet. Finally the sith lord reached the bridge. He strode up it towards the viewport. For a long moment the Vader stared out into the stars, then he turned slowly to the man who stood beside him, quietly waiting.

" Admiral Piett, attend me", he ordered, and strode away. Immediately Piett followed.

///

The imperial admiral could hear the whispers of the crew around him as he hurried after Lord Vader. Had Admiral Piett's time finally come? They never lasted long, however Piett had been a good man and they would miss him.

" _I was a good officer", _the admiral realized. _" I deserve to live. But I can understand why Lord Vader might need to be rid of me. I know so much about him, about the part of him that he conceals so carefully behind that mask. I know that there is a man behind that mask. And I believe that that frightens Lord Vader. I understand but I wish it was different". _

A thousand regrets plagued Piett. He had never married, never started a family, never said goodbye to his sister on Coruscant, never…

Lord Vader's low voice startled him from his reverie.

" In here Admiral". The sith lord was indicating the door to his chambers. Piett entered after his commander.

Vader strode to the pod in the centre of the room, and Piett slowly closed his eyes. He hoped that Lord Vader made it fast, and especially painless. He hoped the sith lord hurried up and just got it over with…

" Admiral". The voice was much closer than he'd thought it would be. Piett's eyes snapped open. He found himself staring at a pale, handsome face framed with curly blond hair. A pair of brilliant sapphire eyes stared at him, and a single scar covered one of the eyes. Piett looked at the stranger in confusion, then slowly realized that this man was wearing Lord Vader's armor. This was impossible, he had seen the back of Lord Vader's head and it hadn't looked like this!

" Milord?" Piett asked finally.

" Piett…" (the voice was so different from how the admiral remembered it, now it was higher and melodious, and carried much more emotion).

Wait, was Lord Vader… kneeling?!

" Piett, you saved Padme's life. Without you I would not have gone after Dooku in time. Thank you. I am in your debt".

The admiral slowly realized what was happening. Lord Vader was thanking him! Then… he was going to live! Joy and relief rushed through Piett, and he smiled thankfully.

" No milord. I was simply repaying you for a debt I owed from long ago. It is always an honor to serve you milord".

Vader looked up, then got to his feet, and for a moment Piett could have sworn that a faint smile clung about the sith lord's lips as well.

" Let us return to the bridge", Vader said simply as he placed the skull-like mask back over his face, covering but not hiding whom Piett knew really was behind the mask.

///

" I'll tell you what happens now", Luke told his friends. " We'll make it up as we go along". And chuckling, the group turned back inside the fortress.

_20 years earlier…_

Padme lay on the bed in the med centre, struggling to give birth as she felt herself overwhelmed by her pain at Anakin's betrayal. Oh Anakin, sweet Anakin, how could he do this to her?! Her jedi protector had turned against her, his love eaten away by greed. She had nothing left to live for. And Padme began to slip into darkness…

And then something clicked in her mind and she began to remember…

_Anakin running towards her in the garden, face alight with joy and love and incredulity…_

_Anakin bursting into her chambers past her guards as she lay curled upon the floor, full of pain from poison… _

_Anakin reaching out for her neck yet again with the force, but this time drawing back, horrified…_

_Anakin humiliating himself so that they could escape from Dooku's cell…_

_Anakin locked in furious combat with Count Dooku in order to obtain the antidote she so desperately needed… _

_Anakin kissing her, saying he loved her, that he was sorry…_

Everything, all of those suppressed memories were rushing back. He had betrayed her, yes, however he had saved her too. Anakin still loved her. Anakin could still be saved.

" Obi Wan", Padme breathed. " There's still good in him. I know there's… still good in him".

And this time, she did not die.

_The End (of part 1)_

_A.N.: Hello everyone! I'm afraid that VOTP is now over! Thank you all so much for sticking with it, I hope that you liked it! I am going to start on the sequel right away, and once I have a clearer idea of how the plot will go I'll start updating again! The sequel will include the confrontation scene with Obi Wan that I didn't know how to fit into this chapter._

_Now, the problem is, I was going to call it " As Sweet as Honey, As Deadly as Steel", but then I thought of calling it " Stained Black"(which is actually what I was going to name another fic I got the idea for). Which do you guys prefer? I've set up a poll on my profile, so you can go there and tell me which you like better or pm/review me if you have a suggestion that isn't either of the two I've thought of. _

_Thank you so much, please review and please keep reading! _


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